Chosen Boys

(Paperback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

"He wonders how big Gods hand is. If he has an eye that can see the whole world in a glance, his hand must be big enough to reach out of the sky and pluck him up with his giant fingers." It is 1974 and seven-year-old Jack leads a carefree life, playing in his Auckland street. But when a new priest selects him to train as an altar boy, Jacks world is imperilled and he shrinks away from his community, his friends and his mother. Chosen Boys explores what happens to a community when they are betrayed by those meant to care for their spiritual wellbeing. Set in a working-class Catholic community against the backdrop of the dawn raids, Molloys moving debut novel asks the question: who will act when a predator declares himself another Christ on Earth This is the first novel to explore child sex abuse in the New Zealand Catholic Church. It is an affecting, moving drama about the hubris of an institution that claims moral authority yet ignores child abuse and the effects this abuse has on children and their communities. I wrote this book because of the profound hurt I feel at the Catholic Churchs betrayal of its people, in particular its most vulnerableits children, says Petra, whose family has been Catholic for generations. Child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church is now being investigated by the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care and in the Care of Faith-based Institutions (New Zealand, 2018), making these issues more relevant than ever. Rene described the novel as rich, haunting, [and] beautifully written.

Author Bio

Petra Molloy was born in Nederland and immigrated with her parents and four siblings in 1952. She was brought up Catholic, as were her five children. Petra and her husband operate a winery and vineyard in Auckland, and much of her family life has been centred on its many and varied demands. In her spare time she has completed a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Auckland and a Ceramic Art degree from the Canberra School of Art. For Petra, writing and clay have always vied with one another, but she continues to write as much as she can in her spare time. In 2017 she completed a Diploma in Crea-tive Writing at Whitireia New Zealand.