The Impostor is a searching account of the torment that besets Father Cenabre, historian of mysticism and controversial star of the Parisian clergy, when his faith suddenly deserts him. As the priest struggles to cope secretly, he crosses paths with associates on the complex margins of a Church facing modern politics in the early twentieth century. Georges Bernanos's compelling and dark portraits of that shadowy world's inhabitants throw into stark relief the determination of a humble priest, Father Chevance, who alone knows Cenabre's secret and struggles to save him. By turn touching and scathing, The Impostor explores the delicate balance between redemption and damnation and illuminates the fragility of our constructed selves. Georges Bernanos (1888-1948), one of the twentieth century's most powerful and idiosyncratic writers, was also the most original Roman Catholic writer of his time. The Impostor, the second of his novels published in French, is the last to be translated into English.

About the Author
J. C. Whitehouse is Visiting Reader in comparative literature at the University of Bradford. He is the author of Vertical Man: The Human Being in the Catholic Novels of Graham Greene, Sigrid Undset, and Georges Bernanos and the translator of many books including Bernanos's Mouchette.

Reviews
"It is surprising to discover that L'Imposteur has never before been translated into English. Not that it is one of George Berananos's best books. Here he has a promising theme: an intelligent, fashionable priest who loses the faith but continues to carry out his pastoral duties... Whitehouse has been faithful to his author."--TLS, 5 May, 2000



Book Information
ISBN 9780803261532
Author Georges Bernanos
Format Paperback
Page Count 250
Imprint Bison Books
Publisher University of Nebraska Press
Weight(grams) 298g