Southernmost by Silas House

Friday, Aug. 18, 2023--San Antonio

Southermost by Silas House was a troubling novel for me.  Uncomfortable decisions are being made throughout it.  The characters seem real, although not all are likable.  The character flaws that exist in many adults are evident throughout the book which also deals with intolerance (social and religious), vindictiveness, and meanness.  Although there are some wonderful situations, something bad is always around the corner throughout the novel.  The story centers around a man and his son.  The man has been raised within fundamentalist Christianity and is the pastor or such a church.  He is married to a woman who is actually more fundamentalist than he is.  As their son grows up, the father delights in his tenderness and love for all things.  The mother secretly takes him for counseling because she thinks he needs to learn to be more manly to get by in this world.  The boy's goodness and gentility actually provide insight to his father regarding the intolerance he has exhibited toward others and leads him to begin to question whether what he has preached as acceptable behavior is truly just and whether it truly matches what Christ taught and exhibited in his life.  The consequences of his expressing this change in belief result in great changes in his life that lead to a poor decision that makes things even worse for his and his son's future.  I gave the book 4 stars out of 5 mainly because of how much of it made me uncomfortable.