The Shadow Library: Remembrances

Louie Anderson, the comedian, died on the 21^st of this month at the age of 68, thus beating the trend of overweight funny men to self-destruct in their thirties. His passing reminded me that I used to have this book, Good Bye Jumbo … Hello Cruel World. It is a wry but hopeful look at his childhood and his struggles with family and food.

Back in the Nineties, Mom was more or less in the thrall of an array of prosperity preachers and their ‘name it and claim it’ teaching. She didn’t want money, however, so much as she wanted healing for her crippling arthritis. She clung to the ‘Christian teaching’ she was being offered more because of attractions to a cult of personality; for instance, she somehow identified with Tammy Faye Baker. In her desperation, Mom believed if she could somehow hit the right level of repentance and obedience and chant the magical mantras of televangelists, she would be healed. She loved Jesus, but she was not being offered much spiritual food, just prosperity schemes.

The one exception from these hucksters on the religious channels was Dr. Gerald Mann, founding pastor of Riverbend Church in Austin, Texas, whose gentle teaching and advice actually helped her come to grips with many problems. I enjoyed watching them with her, and her purchase of his books was one expenditure I never felt wasted. When she passed away, I kept them for a while and received comfort from them.

I got this copy of The Way of Ecben by James Branch Cabell from Yesterday’s Warehouse. It was one of the books damaged by Mike’s dog Nippy; I kept it (repaired by tape) until I got a better replacement.