The Road Home

The story of the prodigal son

J John

 

 

 

 

 

Some books take hold of you and won't let you go. Others let you go and then welcome you back like a long lost friend - or in this particular case, like a long lost son. It's rare to find a book that does both but somehow that's precisely what J John has given us here: The Road Home is a book to read in a single sitting (at only 96 pages it

shouldn't take too long for most readers) yet it's also a book to take slowly, to savour, to think about and return to.

I'll admit that I thought I knew the story of the prodigal son. I've long admired Rembrandt's famous painting of the son's homecoming. This retelling, however, brings even more out of the story. It's told from the point of view of one Francis Nutrizio, the Steward of the Salvadori Estate. He's a respectable man from a respectable family, but a family that met tragedy and left him orphaned. Taken into the staff of the Salvadori household he serves to the best of his ability: he understands the principles of honour and nobility and admires his master's generous spirit in dealing with the common people. Until, that is, the day his master's youngest son rebels and his master gives in to the son's demands.

If you're familiar with the original story told by Jesus (Luke 15: 11-32) you'll know what those demands were: rather than wait for his father to die, he wanted his portion of the inheritance now. Getting it, he leaves without a care in the world. In the original we hear nothing of the impact this departure had on the father, his family, his neighbours. Here, however, through Nutrizio's account, J John explores the wider story, inviting us to share the bewilderment and sorrow of those affected by the father's bizarre decision, but even more, to enter the father's own heart, to share the incredible sense of joy when at last the son returns - as well as the alienation and anger of the older son.

If you've ever struggled with forgiveness, with believing that God can forgive you or with forgiving someone else yourself, if you've ever watched someone forgive the unforgiveable and felt yourself pushed aside by that forgiveness, you need to read this book.

And if you've been forgiven, know the joy of that forgiveness and want to share it with another, I can think of no better book to choose as a gift for that person. It may be a long road home, but once it's been travelled, you'll never want to look back.

 

Published by
Epiphany Publications, 2005
ISBN 1904726321

Price £10

 

Ordering Information
Buy Online from Philo Trust

 

Phil Groom is Webmaster and Reviews Editor of the website; www.christianbookshops.org.uk   He's a regular contributor to Christian Marketplace magazine, writes book reviews for Faith for Life magazine and is also manager of London School of Theology Books & Resources. Any opinions expressed here are personal and should not be taken as representing the views of London School of Theology or of any other group or organisation