Jonathan Odell will talk about his experiences with racism growing up in Mississippi and the power of personal story to heal and transform relationships as he introduces us to his historical novel, THE VIEW FROM DELPHI
Thursday, May 20 at 7:00 pm
St. Luke Presbyterian Church

Set in pre-Civil Rights Mississippi, The View from Delphi is the story of two young mothers, Hazel and Vida, one wealthy and white and the other poor and black, who have only two things in common—the devastating loss of their sons, and a deep and abiding loathing for one another.  After drunkenly crashing her car into a manger scene, gunning for the baby Jesus, Hazel is sedated and bed-ridden.  Vida is hired as a maid to keep tabs on Hazel.  Spending time together with no one else to rely on, the two women find they have more in common than they thought, and together they turn the town on its head. 

The View from Delphi is the story of a town, a people, and a society on the verge of great changes—and great changes begin with small things, like friendship.

About the Author

The day author Jonathan Odell was born in 1951 in Laurel, Mississippi, Willie McGhee, a black man, was being lynched at the nearby courthouse to the cheers of more than a thousand white citizens.  Several blocks south, a young Leontyne Price could be found regularly helping her aunt to clean a mansion, until the white lady of the house heard her sing and got her into Juilliard.  His novel, THE VIEW FROM DELPHI, is Jonathan Odell’s attempt to explain how such contradictions could exist side by side.

He started writing, he says, “when the inconsistencies of my life caught up with me.”  He sold his house, left his partner, gave away the dog—went to the jungles of Costa Rica—and three months later he came back with the resolve to write a novel and embarked upon rediscovering his home state.  “Along the way I discovered my own people, and the mysterious, unspoken history we share with that other race.”

The event is free and open to the public.
Books will be available for purchase at the event.  Jon will return for discussion on the book in September!

Presbyterian Church of the Way in Shoreview is taking part in a fundraising event to support Holy Hammers, a coalition of 13 congregations that builds homes as a part of Habitat for Humanity.  The benefit includes a spaghetti dinner and a concert by the Cedar Lake 7 Gospel Ensemble.

The event takes place Friday, May 14  event from 5:30-8:15 p.m. at Church of the Way located at 3382 N. Lexington Avenue in Shoreview.

Enjoy a cool evening of some of Minnesota’s hottest music at Westminster Presbyterian in Minneapolis.  All are invited to this free program in the Westminster sanctuary. One of the nation’s premier bluegrass bands, Monroe Crossing, will perform (www.monroecrossing.com), as will Cantus, considered by many critics to be the nation’s top male a capella ensemble (www.cantusonline.org).