Evangellyfish is a ruthless, grimly amused, and above all honest look at one of the darkest corners in the western world. Douglas Wilson, a pastor of more than thirty years, paints a vivid and painful picture of evangelical boomchurch leadership . . . in bed.

Look Inside the Book

Chad Lester's kingdom is found in the Midwest. His voice crawls over the airwaves, his books are read by millions (before he reads them), and thousands ride the escalators into the sanctuary every Sunday. And Saturday. And Wednesday, too. He is the head pastor of Camel Creek—a CEO of Soul. And souls come cheap, so he has no overhead.

When Lester is (falsely) accused of molesting a young male counselee, his universe begins to crumble. He is a sexual predator, yes. But strictly straight (and deeply offended that anyone would suggest otherwise). Detectives, reporters, assistant pastors, and old lovers and pay-offs all come out to play.

John Mitchell is also a pastor, but he has no kingdom to speak of—only smalltime choir feuds. He is thrilled at the great man's fall, but his joy quickly fades when the imploding Lester calls him—and a lover or two—for help. How low can grace go? Whores, thieves, and junkies, sure. But pastors?

What People Are Saying:

Winner of the 2012 Christianity Today Best Fiction Award

"Before I dipped into this novel, I was told it was a satire. What satire? I was a pastor for 10 years, and reading this made me squirm. Wilson grasps the untold ambiguities that contemporary pastors experience. This is realistic fiction. No, make that just realistic." -Mark Galli, Senior Managing Editor, Christianity Today

"Scathing....Insightful....Hilarious...." -Tim Challies, Author and Book Reviewer, Challies.com

"Wilson's almost medical precision with the human soul makes Evangellyfish a fantastic read...." -The American Conservative, May 2012

"I have no desire to read yet another Elmer Gantry knockoff about a sex-obsessed preacher and his congregation of hypocrites. Fortunately, Evangellyfish isn't one more on the pile. Doug Wilson isn't writing about 'those crazy Christians,' he's writing about us crazy Christians. When you start this short novel, you'll want to believe it describes that big church across town. By the time you finish, you'll remember that it describes the bigger church you're a part of, that scandalous body that God keeps calling his. Wilson understands better than most that 'judgment must begin at the house of God,' and that God still dwells there despite the most squalid conditions. -Ted Olsen, Managing Editor, News & Online Journalism, Christianity Today

"Evangellyfish may be just what you’re looking for. Like almost everything Wilson writes, it’s witty, funny, and edifying. Especially edifying are the end of the story and how he portrays the Reformed Baptist pastor’s marriage and family. While this novel depicts sin, it doesn’t glorify it; sin is dark and has miserable consequences in this life." -Andrew David Naselli

"Wilson's depictions, though comically exaggerated, are essentially accurate not only of Christian culture but of an America in which middle-class suburbia is the definitive mode. Thus Evangellyfish may be useful for the general reader. It's certainly not a Christian insider novel, and it's not gentle. It cuts deeply and shamelessly. It resorts to sexual double entendre that will make the more pious reader's skin crawl. But it will make sense to anyone who's witnessed the horrifying antics, political quagmires, and social foolishness common to American experience and to its Christian evangelical subculture in particular." -Aaron Belz, Books and Culture

—

Douglas Wilson is a pastor in Moscow, Idaho, a father of three, and grandfather of seventeen. He is the author of numerous books, including Decluttering Your Marriage, Future Men, and How to Exasperate Your Wife.

AUTHOR: Douglas Wilson

PAGE COUNT: 232 pages

SIZE: 5.50x8.50

ISBN 10: 1-591280-98-2

ISBN-13: 978-1-591280-98-9

PUB. DATE: January 31, 2012