Death Comes For the Archbishop - Willa Cather

Published by William Heinemann Ltd: London & Toronto, 1936.
First published 1927.

This is a slow paced and episodic book, following two Catholic priests seeking to establish and grow the diocese of New Mexico in the earliest days of the state. With both main characters apparently loosely based on historical figures, and with many other historical figures making an appearance, it is an interesting look at a specific part of religious history.

It is also a book that grew on me. I really struggled to get into it's rhythm to start with, and actually put it down for a number of months before picking it up again. However, as the episodes (and the years of the narrative) continue, the characters of Father Latour and Father Vaillant do become more rounded. Vaillant is the more charismatic and evangelistic of the pair, whereas Latour (who is destined to become the titular Archbishop) is the more methodical, administrative and intellectual. 

The book unfolds various stories at a gradual pace, and even within a story might take a digression somewhere else to fill in the history of something that was only mentioned in passing. There are villainous figures (including a worldly priest who breaks away from mainstream Catholicism, as well as a Protestant family of ne'er-do-wells), some comical moments (such as when a widow is in danger of losing her inheritance due to claiming she is ten years younger than she is), and some interesting insights into different cultures of the time. The Catholicism of the main priests does occasionally become quite foreign to myself, as a Protestant, as well, particularly the veneration given to Mary to such a degree that it seems like idolatry to myself!

But... overall, it IS an interesting book, with a gentle and sometimes melancholic feel (particularly towards the ending). Probably not one I'll read again in a hurry, but one I enjoyed overall, nonetheless.

Completed 31 October 2026.

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