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Il Bambino Sbagliato (2011)

by Francesca Kay(Favorite Author)

3.23 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

8833922812 (ISBN13: 9788833922812)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Bollati Boringhieri

review 1: From the book cover:"A riveting story of religious passion gone tragically wrong."Yup. In spades."When word gets out that Mary-Margaret O'Reilly, a somewhat slow-witted but harmless young woman, may have been witness to a miracle, religious mania descends on the Church of the Sacred Heart in Battersea, London."Not mentioned-the sly dig at social media's roll in the mania."Slyly funny, utterly haunting and nothing short of unforgettable."The only part I would disagree with is slyly funny. It's clever, witty at times, but only enough to give a balance to the bleaker pieces of the story. And there are some very bleak pieces. But I did find it moving, despite my lack of personal religion.
review 2: Knowing that the title refers to the movement of holy relics, I hav... moree to say I anticipated a slightly different story. But on the other hand, relics bring to my mind pilgrims. I can't help thinking about *The Canterbury Tales* when I consider the meaning of the title. All of the characters in the story revolve in various orbits around the church where a miracle may or may not have happened. Rather than introducing us to the various characters going on a pilgrimage, Kay gives life to a small cast of characters going about their regular routines, giving us a feel for them & their interconnectedness before the tragedy at the heart of the story ripples out to change them all. I enjoyed meeting all Kay's characters. They are all so beautifully flawed & so very human. After reading the book, I really appreciate that much more Scrappy Lamonte's comment about the tradition of throwing the bones as a means to predict the future. The future is tricky business & there's no telling where the bones will land. I though about that often as I read the book. On any given day who knows what will happen? It is by pure chance that Felix is in the church in time to prevent the death of another child... or is it? Mary-Margret was expecting divine intervention & in steps Felix. And because he gave his life to save another on sacred ground no less, Felix might well be considered a saint. It's not by accident that story takes place during Easter. The ceremony of translating relics is a rite usually reserved for the relics of saints. In that sense, the translation of the bones could refer to Felix's removal from the church & subsequent transport to the hospital. The statue of Jesus that was believed to be source of a miracle by Mary-Margret remains quietly in the church. And sadly, the pure potential that is the very nature of a child is now silent as well. At the end of the day, what has more value? A life or an inanimate object? It's an easy question to answer & yet so many of the characters in the story shared feelings of isolation & loneliness (in marriage, in boarding school, empty nest, the fragile widows/widowers, not to mention Father Diamond's crisis of faith that puts him at a remove from his congregation & the church itself). Mary-Margret offers up her prayers in the Church of the Sacred Heart, but Lonely Hearts would perhaps be closer to the truth.*The Translation of the Bones* tells a subtle tale, to be sure, but it does offer up a lot to contemplate. less

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