Marianne Perry's Blog - Posts Tagged "william-peter-blatty"
Book Review: Evidence Life After Deathy by William Peter Blatty.
Finding Peter: A True Story Of The Hand Of Providence And Evidence Of Life After Death by William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty authored The Exorcist, a 1971 novel about the demonic possession of a girl. His son, Peter, died November 7, 2006 aged nineteen of a rare heart disorder and he wrote this book to win our belief loved ones can communicate from the afterlife and a force called “providence” operates in the world. (Note: the dictionary defines “providence” as an event or circumstance ascribable to divine interpretation or care exercised by God over the universe.)
Blatty was born January 7, 1928 in New York City. His parents emigrated from Lebanon in 1921 and separated when he was three.
Part One explores his childhood, Jesuit education, study at Georgetown University and highlights the antics of his eccentric Roman Catholic mother.
Part Two focuses on his career including a recount as an editor in Beirut with the United States Information Agency plus his work as an actor, comic author and musical screenplay writer. It also describes his writing process with respect to The Exorcist and details the presence of providence in the novel becoming a best-seller. The merging of seven coincidences he cites certainly caused me to reflect on the play of luck in anyone’s success.
Part Three outlines fourteen incidents of providence. Examples of a levitating telephone receiver when negotiating film rights for The Exorcist, the crashing of a wall clock in his beach house and the receipt of a 50th birthday greeting from a deceased brother are amongst those witnessed.
Part Four profiles Blatty’s wife, Julie but its center is Peter. An index is included at the end of the book.
I have mixed feelings with regards Finding Peter. Parts One to Three introduced us to Blatty but the material needed editing and I sensed much of it “filler” intended to produce sufficient page count before beginning Part Four. I found his tendency to ramble and use run-on sentences impeded the flow of his writing. Blatty’s examples in Part Three evoked deliberation but fewer would have adequately showcased his experiences with providence.
In Part Four, Blatty presents his son, Peter, as a child with spiritual insight manifesting at age three. His mother maintained a “contemporaneous diary of statements” speaking to this quality. Peter suffered from bipolar disorder, which led to addiction issues he seems to have conquered. An athletic amiable young man, Blatty’s family photographs assist the reader gain familiarity; nevertheless, more anecdotal information would have painted a clearer picture of Peter. In contrast with earlier parts of the book, I deemed this section abbreviated and rushed. Blatty’s love for his family and Peter, however, was evident as was his egregious grief from his son’s sudden passing.
The book builds towards pages 178 to 204 where Blatty illustrates messages from Peter he and Julie received over a period of eight years. The episodes specific to the retrieval of Peter’s medal and the greenery spouting on Noah’s tree in Maryland on Blatty’s January birthday are remarkable. As an aside, Blatty has donated “every penny of royalties earned by this book to scholarships established in Peter’s name at his former Maryland high school.”
Blatty is convinced there is life after death and whether or not he proves loved ones can communicate with us should be the prerogative of the reader. I am uncomfortable passing such judgement. For those keen to weigh this issue as well as the possibility of providence, I would recommend Finding Peter.
Marianne Perry
Author of The Inheritance
Writing inspired by genealogical research to solve family mysteries.
http://www.marianneperry.ca
William Peter Blatty authored The Exorcist, a 1971 novel about the demonic possession of a girl. His son, Peter, died November 7, 2006 aged nineteen of a rare heart disorder and he wrote this book to win our belief loved ones can communicate from the afterlife and a force called “providence” operates in the world. (Note: the dictionary defines “providence” as an event or circumstance ascribable to divine interpretation or care exercised by God over the universe.)
Blatty was born January 7, 1928 in New York City. His parents emigrated from Lebanon in 1921 and separated when he was three.
Part One explores his childhood, Jesuit education, study at Georgetown University and highlights the antics of his eccentric Roman Catholic mother.
Part Two focuses on his career including a recount as an editor in Beirut with the United States Information Agency plus his work as an actor, comic author and musical screenplay writer. It also describes his writing process with respect to The Exorcist and details the presence of providence in the novel becoming a best-seller. The merging of seven coincidences he cites certainly caused me to reflect on the play of luck in anyone’s success.
Part Three outlines fourteen incidents of providence. Examples of a levitating telephone receiver when negotiating film rights for The Exorcist, the crashing of a wall clock in his beach house and the receipt of a 50th birthday greeting from a deceased brother are amongst those witnessed.
Part Four profiles Blatty’s wife, Julie but its center is Peter. An index is included at the end of the book.
I have mixed feelings with regards Finding Peter. Parts One to Three introduced us to Blatty but the material needed editing and I sensed much of it “filler” intended to produce sufficient page count before beginning Part Four. I found his tendency to ramble and use run-on sentences impeded the flow of his writing. Blatty’s examples in Part Three evoked deliberation but fewer would have adequately showcased his experiences with providence.
In Part Four, Blatty presents his son, Peter, as a child with spiritual insight manifesting at age three. His mother maintained a “contemporaneous diary of statements” speaking to this quality. Peter suffered from bipolar disorder, which led to addiction issues he seems to have conquered. An athletic amiable young man, Blatty’s family photographs assist the reader gain familiarity; nevertheless, more anecdotal information would have painted a clearer picture of Peter. In contrast with earlier parts of the book, I deemed this section abbreviated and rushed. Blatty’s love for his family and Peter, however, was evident as was his egregious grief from his son’s sudden passing.
The book builds towards pages 178 to 204 where Blatty illustrates messages from Peter he and Julie received over a period of eight years. The episodes specific to the retrieval of Peter’s medal and the greenery spouting on Noah’s tree in Maryland on Blatty’s January birthday are remarkable. As an aside, Blatty has donated “every penny of royalties earned by this book to scholarships established in Peter’s name at his former Maryland high school.”
Blatty is convinced there is life after death and whether or not he proves loved ones can communicate with us should be the prerogative of the reader. I am uncomfortable passing such judgement. For those keen to weigh this issue as well as the possibility of providence, I would recommend Finding Peter.
Marianne Perry
Author of The Inheritance
Writing inspired by genealogical research to solve family mysteries.
http://www.marianneperry.ca
