Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession

by Anne Rice

book data

236 ratings, 3.42 average rating, 102 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		19%
4		28%
3		33%
2		11%
1		6%

edit

published

October 7th 2008 by Knopf

binding

Hardcover, 256 pages

isbn

0307268276 (isbn13: 9780307268273)

description

Anne Rice has written magnificent tales of otherworldly beings: novels that explore the realms of good and evil, love and alienation, pageantry and ri

...more

find at: Amazon | Half.com | Barnes & Noble | compare prices ($12.88)…

new topic
discuss this book

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Next Best Boo...: What are you reading?	13081	11056	37 minutes ago
Chicks On Lit: what are you reading.	1286	1723	7 hours, 41 min ago
75 Books 2009: Julie P's Books	26	70	2 days ago, 04:31AM

friend reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

lists with this book

This book is currently not featured on any Listopia lists. Add this book to your favorite list »

other reviews (showing 1-20 of 615)

sort: default (?) | date
filters: all | text-only

11/11/08

Skylar Burris rated it:

bookshelves: biography, christianity, nonfiction, religion

Read in December, 2008

I've never read a book by Anne Rice, and nor do I have any particular interest in her, but I picked this book up because I always enjoy a good spiritual autobiography, and I hoped this would be one. Only about 100 of the 245 pages held much interest or made much of an impact on me, but they held such interest and made such an impact that I give the book a 4 star rating (3.5 if I could).

The first third (or perhaps half) of the story recounts her Catholic childhood in excessive sensor...more I've never read a book by Anne Rice, and nor do I have any particular interest in her, but I picked this book up because I always enjoy a good spiritual autobiography, and I hoped this would be one. Only about 100 of the 245 pages held much interest or made much of an impact on me, but they held such interest and made such an impact that I give the book a 4 star rating (3.5 if I could).

The first third (or perhaps half) of the story recounts her Catholic childhood in excessive sensory detail and with too little focus, although there were moments of interest. However, I found the next two thirds of the book, particularly as she recounts herself being drawn back to Christ and the Church, much more interesting, and there were even portions that moved me deeply. If the reader can slug through the parts that drag for her (and these will likely vary by reader), I think she will find a pay off in reading Called Out of Darkness.

What particularly struck me was Rice's experience of realizing that she did not have to have her questions answered in order to come to Christ, that no "theological or social question…no social paradox, no historic disaster, no hideous record of injustice or misery…no torment over the fate of this or that atheist or gay friend, no worry for those…ostracized…by…any…church should stand between" her and God. "I didn't have to know how He was going to save the unlettered and the unbaptized, or how He would redeem the conscientious heathen who had never spoken His name. I didn't have to know how my gay friends would find their way to Redemption; or how my hardworking secular humanist friends could or would receive the power of His Saving Grace. I didn't have to know why good people suffered agony or died in pain. He knew. And it was His _knowing_ that overwhelmed me." I think this stood out to me because I believe these are difficulties that keep a great many moderns from surrendering to God, and because the way she wrote this entire passage (which goes on for 2-3 pages) brought home to me that, ultimately, being a Christian begins and ends with allowing oneself to be loved by God. Once we allow ourselves, really allow ourselves, to stop running from the Hound of Heaven, once we refuse to allow any impediment or confusion or question of doctrine to stop us from falling into His open arms, everything else will eventually—not easily, but eventually—fall into place. Refusing to come before we can understand or accept all, refusing to embrace Him before we can embrace some particular doctrine, as Rice says, missing the point: "In the moment of surrender, I let go of all the…questions which had kept me from Him for countless years. I simply let them go. There was the sense, profound and wordless, that if He knew everything I did not have to know everything, and that, in seeking to know everything, I'd been, all of my life, missing the entire point."

After insisting repeatedly that she wants to avoid all religious politics and religious controversies, Anne Rice concludes by asking, in effect, why can't we just look at traditional Christian teachings on sex as being as outmoded and irrelevant to Christianity as the old belief that the sun revolved around the earth? So much for avoiding religious controversies. This suggestion she builds up to slowly, with some timidity, and much insistence that it is not something she wants to focus on. Yet it seems all of her talk of gender (much of which was interesting to me as someone who had a similar "genderless" experience of childhood), has actually been building up to this "suggestion." I wish, rather, that she had avoided religious political controversies as she had claimed she desired to do, and stuck to the spiritual journey until the very end. This small objection aside (and her theology itself is decidedly pro-creedal and pro-canonical), and after ploughing through the duller parts, all in all, it was a successful spiritual autobiography, achieving its purpose of moving me, as a reader, with the desire to grow closer to God myself. It has also led me to desire to read her novels on Christ.
(less)

Like this review? yes (4 people liked it)

2 comments

04/19/09

Patty rated it:

Read in April, 2009

Anne Rice recalls the sights and sounds of the Catholicism of her youth with such vivid images that I was singing "Tan tum ergo, sacramentum..." along with her. Warning: If you aren't a 50 something Catholic, (or recovering Catholic) you might not "get it".

I completed the book in a weekend and was fascinated by how Anne Rice describes her inner landscape and how her conversion experience has changed everything for her. She makes a strong case for the power of art ...more

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

1 comment

12/21/08

Ann rated it:

Read in December, 2008

I finished this wonderful memoir by Anne Rice on our trip home from Christmas in Virginia with our son and his new wife. This book touched me so deeply ... Anne Rice grew up in New Orleans in a family with deep roots in orthodox Christian Catholic traditions. I loved how she tells how her first understanding of God came from the auditory liturgies and the richly visual iconic rituals of the Roman Catholic Church ... not from the written pages of Scripture. In fact she struggled for years to mas...more

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

1 comment

11/12/08

Jimmy rated it:

I'm proudly 52-- indeed, almost 53-- and am happy to realize that my life experience amounts to something: after all these long years, I know to give things a chance. My favorite earlier works by Ms. Rice were "Cry to Heaven" and the books about the Mayfair witches; I found the latter series evocative and spooky and just very engrossing! I could disappear into the atmosphere that swirled around those books, and hated to see them end.
Being a practicing Catholic (which means that...more

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

add a comment

02/15/09

David rated it:

Memoir of the author's growing up in a devout Catholic family in New Orleans, then drifting away from the church as a young adult in the 60's over her social views at odds with the church's teachings, then dramatically returning ("converting" as she says) to Catholicism after a 38-year hiatus.

The U-shaped trajectory of engagement with organized religion over the lifespan is not at all uncommon, but the length of time she was away and the intensity of her involvement now a...more Memoir of the author's growing up in a devout Catholic family in New Orleans, then drifting away from the church as a young adult in the 60's over her social views at odds with the church's teachings, then dramatically returning ("converting" as she says) to Catholicism after a 38-year hiatus.

The U-shaped trajectory of engagement with organized religion over the lifespan is not at all uncommon, but the length of time she was away and the intensity of her involvement now are. Also, she didn't return just after having kids or getting married or experiencing any of the tragedies of her life (daughter died in childhood, for instance) -- just dawned on her that she loved God and loved Jesus and wanted to devote her life to him, by this account.

Many people of liberal social views struggle to reconcile their politics and their Catholicism -- the author's resolution was interesting in that she says she more or less ignored anything unsavory about the church. I have a gay son and gay friends and they teach that it's a sinful lifestyle? No problem, ignore it. I think women should be fully equal in the church and they're not? Ignore it. Maybe someday it will change. Pedophilia scandal among priests -- just don't read that stuff. She satisfied herself that all was well at the top anyhow by reading bios of recent popes and becoming convinced that they were good pious men.

Anyway, interesting for me [having gone to Catholic schools through high school:] to read about a pre-Vatican II Catholic coming to terms with all the changes ("hey, these prayers are in English; what's up with that?").

She's candid about how the conversion affected her fiction writing (i.e., sounds like it stopped the vampire novels in their tracks, supporting the fears expressed by George Orwell in reviewing Graham Greene, that once a novelist becomes adamantly Catholic they won't write about anything else).

My low rating for the book had mainly to do with the writing itself, in particular:

(a) the singular focus on her religious involvement -- I understand that's the theme, but there are many passing references to aspects of her life (her own late-life diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes, her daughter's death, her having 49 employees [what does a novelist do with 49 employees?:], her gay son, living near Haight-Ashbury in the late 60's) that could profitably have been elaborated in lieu of such a tremendously detailed account of what nun said what when in her grade school.

(b) unedited repetition. Even she seems to realize she's repeating herself way too much -- I can't recall any book I've read with so many "As I mentioned before..." "I already said this, but it's important, so let me stress that....." and the like.

(less)

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

add a comment

02/04/09

Jamieson rated it:

In 2005, I witnessed one of the greatest changes in literary history.

Anne Rice, the woman known for writing about vampires, witches, mummies and spirits announced she was going to write books about the life of Jesus Christ.

I remember thinking that this was someone’s really great idea of a joke. But the joke was on me. The first book, Christ the Lord - Out of Egypt, was released shortly after the incredible announcement.

At the time, I worked in a bookstore. I...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

01/27/09

Jason added it

"Called out of Darkness: A spiritual confession" chronicles the well-known author's return to the Catholic Church after a decades long absence.

The once self-professed atheist received attention a few years back when she first made her conversion public and began writing her "Christ The Lord" series, a retelling of the life of Christ. While gaining new fans and I'm sure she lost others, so I'd be willing to be that there are plenty of people out there curious to r...more "Called out of Darkness: A spiritual confession" chronicles the well-known author's return to the Catholic Church after a decades long absence.

The once self-professed atheist received attention a few years back when she first made her conversion public and began writing her "Christ The Lord" series, a retelling of the life of Christ. While gaining new fans and I'm sure she lost others, so I'd be willing to be that there are plenty of people out there curious to read this book and find out how it all came to be.

The book takes a while to get to the conversion, which may irk some. Rice uses the first half to paint the picture of her youth. Much detail is given to the New Orleans of that era, right down to the little details of the churches and neighborhoods. It may seem redundant after a while, perhaps even rambling, but this all serves to illustrate the universe the author came from, and the steadfast Catholic faith she once held.

She goes into her college years, her transition to atheism, and even a little bit into her publishing career, but fans who are hoping to learn more about her books and characters and how they were developed be warned: this is not a biography so she only glosses over those details briefly.

Finally, she comes to her conversion, a long process that lasted numerous years, born out of a yearning for God that never really went away in her life.

The conversion story is powerful but also very personal, and some readers, especially some of the critics of her newfound Christianity and life path may be befuddled and find it lacking of the concrete explantions they may be looking for. This is an interior story of a woman's spiritual journey, so if you're hoping from rays of light shining down from heaven, visits from angels or anything of the life, you won't find them here.

Believers should appreciate some of her struggles and her bold dedication of her life and her work for Christ.

It's a worthy read for long time fans of the author, her new devotees to her religious books, and anyone curious to read a heartfelt spiritual conversion story. (less)

Like this review? yes

add a comment

12/30/08

Jennifer rated it:

Read in December, 2008

recommended to Jennifer by: Found it in the library
recommends it for: Thoes who are learning about their own conection to God, and anyone else.

This is the story of Ann Rice’s spiritual journey, from being raised strict Catholic to atheism and back to the Catholic church. It isn’t an autobiography of her life, she only touches briefly on what was happening outside her spiritual quest. I found that as she described her childhood her line of thought was a little scattered, but her about her adulthood observations about the church, God, and her relationship with it all was incredible insightful. There were many quotes that I love, b...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

01/30/09

Jennifer rated it:

I couldn't bare to finish this book...it was a total lack of organized thoughts...

UGH!!!! WHAT A BORE!!!!! I am only finishing this book out of principle. I've never read Anne Rice's novels because they are my style but I have heard from so many she's fantastic. I was really interested in getting into her head but once I started reading this overbearing book it turned me sour to her writing style! You are so inundates with details you loose site of what she's trying to ha...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

11/15/08

Bill rated it:

Read in November, 2008

I can imagine many fans of the novels of Anne Rice were surprised that her first memoir, Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession, is not about her life as a writer; rather, it is about her life as a Catholic and the role of faith in her life.

Rice beautifully describes her life as a child being enveloped in Catholicism---the masses, the sacraments, her experiences as a student in Catholic school, the religious holidays (Nativity scenes set up at churches in New Orleans at the ...more I can imagine many fans of the novels of Anne Rice were surprised that her first memoir, Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession, is not about her life as a writer; rather, it is about her life as a Catholic and the role of faith in her life.

Rice beautifully describes her life as a child being enveloped in Catholicism---the masses, the sacraments, her experiences as a student in Catholic school, the religious holidays (Nativity scenes set up at churches in New Orleans at the beginning of November, and the Stations of the Cross during Lent)--which, being a Catholic my own darn self, I strongly related to. She was also a child with a strong sense of family and what family meant to her. One revelation that was quite surprising to me was that she was not a big reader as a child; she was more of a listener--to stories and poem told to her by the mother she loved, and the celebrations of Mass in Latin.

Upon entering college in 1960, at the age of 19, several factors in Rice's life (including her gender and the turbulent era in which she lived at the time) led her to renounce the Catholicism of her childhood and proclaim herself an atheist. The reasons she chooses this radical shift from devout faith in a supreme being to no faith in a supreme being had many complicated factors. But Anne finished college, married poet Stan Rice, had two children (one tragically died at the age of five), and became a bestselling novelist specializing in vampires and erotica.

Rice remained an atheist for 38 years until she felt she was called back to Catholicism. After slipping into a diabetic coma in 1998, Rice slowly but surely regained her faith. She now devotes her writing to God and has since published a series of religious books based on the early life of Jesus Christ.

I admit I am not a huge fan of overtly religious literature, fiction or nonfiction, but Rice's memoir really pulled me in. Her journey full circle from Catholic to atheist to Catholic was very intriguing. However, being a fan of Rice's fiction, particularly The Vampire Chronicles, I was a little disappointed that her memoir gave little insight into her life as a writer, the inspiration of her characters, and her success as a novelist.

But remember this was not her intentions with this book. It is not the autobiography of an author; it's the autobiography of a devout Catholic who happens to be an author. Also, her passion for her new found religion is quite admirable.

However, some may view her devotion as overzealous, and even the hugest Anne Rice devotees will be turned off by the book simply for this aspect, which is a shame because it is well-written and fascinating to read, regardless of one's religious persuasion (if any). Her prose in her memoir is just as vivid and beautiful as her gothic fiction (which she does not renounce, by the way, regardless of her rediscovered faith).

Anne Rice makes it know that she stands by her life, her choices, and her work--and this is admirable in itself.

But to be frank, the main idea I took away from Called Out Of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession is that it is essential for every person to define their own religious beliefs for himself/herself and equally essential not to be coerced into a particular dogma. Faith is a personal thing, it's a private thing and, as with Anne Rice's life, it can change your outlook on everything for the better...or for the worse.

whatbillsbeendoin.blogspot.com
(less)

Like this review? yes

add a comment

05/18/09

KatieR Estepp Riedinger rated it:

Read in May, 2009

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Despite this book's slow start, it ended up being very interesting. She goes into incredibly intricate detail about her Catholic childhood, something I can't relate to, but may interest someone with the same background. She goes on for chapters about it and because of that, I almost gave up.

Something that she left out that I am so curious about is how her husband, Stan, reacted to her rediscovered faith. It seemed that the timing of her leaving the faith and meeting Stan (an athei...more Despite this book's slow start, it ended up being very interesting. She goes into incredibly intricate detail about her Catholic childhood, something I can't relate to, but may interest someone with the same background. She goes on for chapters about it and because of that, I almost gave up.

Something that she left out that I am so curious about is how her husband, Stan, reacted to her rediscovered faith. It seemed that the timing of her leaving the faith and meeting Stan (an atheist) have a lot in common, so I couldn't help but wonder what he thought about her interest in relics, travelling to Israel, and ramping up interest in Christianity. At one point, a note from her diary says that Stan was "happy" for her, but is that all he said? Curious.

I felt sorrow for her because it seemed as though she fought harder to maintain her DISbelief when she actually was starting to believe. That must have been so difficult. She had surrounded herself with what she calls "urban atheist friends" and mentions feeling that she had gone too far, seen too much, etc., to believe.

"In the moment of surrender, I let go of all the theological or social questions which had kept me from Him for countless years. I simply let them go. There was the sense, profound and wordless, that if He knew everything, I did not need to know everything, and that, in seeking to know everything, I'd been, all my life, missing the entire point."

I liked what she had to say about loving one another and agree with her that this is one of Christ's most important message.

"It is life changing and endlessly difficult, and the steadfast determination to love is threatened at every moment. We walk a tightrope over a pit of demons when we insist upon love. And sometimes we walk alone.

The truth is, we are never alone, but we are tempted to think we are alone."

I wasn't so happy with the way the book ended. She goes places I wish she hadn't and seems to end with criticism against what she had been trying to explain her support for. It didn't make a lot of sense to me, in fact, there's a lot of rambling throughout the book that made it difficult to read. There's a storyline to follow, but it's clearly distracting.(less)

Like this review? yes

5 comments

12/06/08

Jo rated it:

bookshelves: biography--memoir, inspirational, religious-spiritual

Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession, is not about Anne Rice's life as a writer; rather, it is about her life as a Catholic and the role of faith in her life. She was raised Catholic, then fell away and became an Atheist for 38 years before finding God and dedicating her life to Him again, through the Catholic church. It is an amazingly honest book, and her descriptions of New Orleans, of the Catholic Church, of her searching for God while insisting He doesn't exist, and the joy and intelledc...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

01/22/09

Robin rated it:

Read in January, 2009

This autobiography tells how Anne Rice left the church and lived as an atheist for most of her adult life before she discovered that belief and faith are about more than churches inhabited by flawed people just like her. my favorite part is in the last chapter where she says " When people refer to me as a "prodigal daughter" because I have given up writing about "vampires and witches" I am confused. I feel no guilt whatsoever for anything I ever wrote."..."I...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

10/28/08

Christa rated it:

Read in November, 2008

It's really not fair that someone can write such an honest-sounding memoir of her spiritual journey and yet it be so beautifully written. If you read it, I would love to hear your thoughts. There are so many things I would love to quote from this book. Just a couple:

"It seems to me that many people think a Christian conversion is exactly that -- a falling into simplicity; a falling from intellect into an emotional refuge; an attempt to feel good. . . . My return involved comp...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

11/17/08

Tasha Chinnock rated it:

Read in December, 2008

I loved Anne Rice in my early twenties, and gobbled up all of her Vampire Chronicles - they spoke to me in a way I didn't really understand. Once I became a Christian, I put her on the shelf. I was so excited to read her conversion story, but when I saw that she was a Catholic I wondered if I would even like it. She didn't disappoint me. It is full of the same amazing richness that made the Vampire Chronicles so awesome. For the first time in my life, I understand Catholicism from a Catholic poi...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

01/22/09

Christina rated it:

Read in February, 2009

This is an amazingly descriptive book that describes anyone's spiritual journey that has left church and then returned. Anne describes vividly what it was like growing up Catholic, and succeeds explaining to anyone, Catholic or Protestant, the truth to the phrase, "Once a Catholic, always a Catholic."

The first half of the book is full of description of her childhood, and either it was a little slow at the start, or I was just so anxious to get to her conversion. Either ...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

04/18/09

Mary rated it:

Read in April, 2009

Very interesting memoir of being raised as a good Catholic in New Orleans, her many years as an atheist, and her embracing the Church again many years later.
For someone who started to take catechism at the age of 17, I found it an enlightening view of what it meant to be raised as a Catholic girl, thoroughly submerged in a religious culture, with no doubts left unanswered by dogma. Almost every moment of her childhood was influenced by one form or another of religious practise.
...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

01/09/09

Diane Chamberlain rated it:

I love reading about other people's spiritual journeys, and having been raised Catholic I was curious to read Rice's memoir. I found it tough going -- maybe because my Catholic youth was not as glowingly positive as hers. All the descriptions of churches, statuary, and spectacle were simply too much for me. Ultimately, I was not sure why she returned to the church after decades as an atheist, but I accept that as part of the mystery of faith. It's difficult to explain one's personal journey to s...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

05/29/09

Kristen rated it:

Read in June, 2009

When I found out that our bookclub pick for this month was a Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice, I was a little curious to know how she went from vampire stories to books about Christ. And when I put a hold on it on the library website, this book came up as another suggested read, so of course I couldn't resist.

I really enjoyed reading about Rice's upbringing as a strict devout Catholic, how she became an atheist, and then later reconverted to Catholicism. It was all very in...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

03/15/09

Juliann rated it:

Read in January, 2009

I had wondered about Anne Rice. I knew her as a writer of vampire fiction and then she wrote two books about Jesus. So I was excited to read this book, revealing the story of how she came back to the church. Her account of her life as a young girl, where the images of religion and God were so important, to her drifting away and finally returning with a renewed understanding of the difference between religion and faith is wonderfully transparent. And her focus on the need for forgivenss and g...more

Like this review? yes

add a comment

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 30 31 next »

recent status updates | recommend it | blog it

combine
other editions (3)

quotes from this book

"It seems to me in retrospect that the department stores and the dime stores did an excellent job of extending the 'sacred space' of Christmas in those days. And I sometimes wonder whether for people of no religion, this might have been the only sacred space they knew. When people rail now against the 'commercial nature of Christmas,' I'm always conflicted an unable to respond. Because I think those who would banish commercialism from the holiday fail to understand how precious and comforting the shop displays and music can be." More quotes...