The Stranger, by Joy Margetts
There is a great sense of place and time here, and we are drawn quickly into Silas’ world and his mental struggles. Silas runs away from his monastery feeling he has failed in trying to establish its daughter house in a hostile environment. On his travels he is the stranger, stealing a coracle (with great incompetence), living with a carpenter’s widow and helping her find her feet, learning from a lonely charcoal burner … though he seemed humble enough he learns a proper humility as those he thinks less religiously educated than himself teach him something else about his faith. While he is a stranger to them, he has tried to make himself a stranger to God, too, but God, of course, does not take this lying down. Silas’ service to others is a strong theme – having felt he failed in this at Grace Dieu, he goes on to help everyone he meets quite unselfconsciously, though he also learns how to accept help from others. Though we can take Silas as the stranger of the title, one character, Cennad, who leads him and encourages him at one of his lowest ebbs is also a key stranger, not seen to speak to anyone but Silas, moving mysteriously and vanishing just when he has seen Silas to safety. This is a lovely and encouraging story, grounded in its historical setting, woven in with appropriate Biblical quotations and insights, particularly from Brother Hywel who has appeared in previous books. It is a delight to see Silas re-encounter God, the God who reminds him, surprisingly, that Silas loves Him (not the other way around, which is the more obvious statement!). A joy to read.
