false 247748 2 The heartrending story of the forbidden love between a nun and a priest-by a writer who illuminates the details of everyday life, from the quiet rhythms of the cloister to the exuberant sensuality of the Amalfi Coast <P> When her family moves to Puerto Rico in the early 1950s, thirteen-year-old Beryl Bissell enters a milieu heady with sexuality and passion. Uncomfortable in her developing body and yearning for unconditional love, she becomes convinced that only God can satisfy her longing. On the day following her eighteenth birthday, she enters a cloistered convent in New Jersey, believing that God has called her to this way of life. <P> At first, she is blissfully happy. Within the year, however, she has become anorectic and prey to other obsessive compulsions. Her vocation at risk, she overcomes these disorders and perseveres for another ten years, until she must return home to Puerto Rico to help care for her ailing father. <P> Thrust once more into the sensual world of Puerto Rico, she discovers that religious garb cannot protect her from her budding sexuality. She is drawn to Padre Vittorio, a handsome Italian priest, and undergoes a belated coming of age. For the next three years, as she travels to and from the island, she struggles to reconcile human desire with spiritual longing. Unable to confide in either her mother or abbess, she tries to find the inner freedom that would allow her to love fully. The events that follow take the reader on a dizzying journey into the heart of desire, both spiritual and human. <P> In spare but lyric language, Bissell weaves a powerful story of love, death, guilt, and redemption-a pilgrimage that reaches beyond dogma to personal truth and evokes a transformation that changes not only herself, but the lives of those whom she loves most. 240044 2006 The Scent of God: A Memoir total:69|5:24|4:22|3:21|2:2|1:0| 69 275 124 23 4 1 false false Sun Sep 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 08 06:15:48 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 01 06:28:32 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 1 false false Fri Jul 25 16:34:04 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 25 16:34:04 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat Jun 30 13:09:23 -0700 2007 Sat Jun 30 13:14:48 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Jul 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 29 22:49:10 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 22 23:10:01 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Sep 28 20:31:08 -0700 2008 Sun Sep 28 20:34:12 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Oct 26 23:35:35 -0700 2008 Tue Nov 11 22:47:09 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Aug 18 15:39:02 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 18 15:44:07 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue May 20 07:33:09 -0700 2008 Tue May 20 07:39:19 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Sat May 26 13:03:58 -0700 2007 Sat May 26 13:10:56 -0700 2007 4 1 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Dec 19 07:44:05 -0800 2007 Wed Dec 19 07:44:05 -0800 2007 5 1 false false Wed Jul 02 11:35:14 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 30 05:35:06 -0700 2009 4 1 false false Sat Feb 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 24 20:09:36 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 16 09:28:45 -0800 2008 5 1 false false Fri Oct 31 17:51:41 -0700 2008 Fri Oct 31 17:51:41 -0700 2008 5 1 false false Sun Mar 30 13:36:02 -0700 2008 Sun Mar 30 13:38:39 -0700 2008 3 1 true false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Dec 19 06:07:14 -0800 2007 Wed Dec 19 06:07:14 -0800 2007 5 1 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Fri Nov 16 07:17:05 -0800 2007 Fri Nov 16 07:17:51 -0800 2007 5 1 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 28 05:43:04 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 28 05:44:19 -0700 2007 5 1 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Jan 26 19:24:14 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 30 15:39:49 -0800 2008 5 1 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Oct 31 12:15:55 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 31 12:22:33 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Wed Jan 14 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Sep 21 11:40:13 -0700 2008 Wed Jan 14 18:47:58 -0800 2009 more...]]>