Kevin is the reason
Updated: Feb 1, 2022
Last week I did something that I very rarely do. I started a novel. (By and large I read almost exclusively history, memoirs, and theology.)
Not only did I pick up a novel, I picked up what many scholars consider the first, and the greatest, novel ever written: Don Quixote.
It's a hefty book. My particular copy tops out at 940 pages. It's a good thing that the book is divided into 74 chapters. I estimate that it will take me until fall to finish the adventure.
What caused me to purchase Dox Quixote? Kevin, from Jamaica, is the reason. Kevin and I met via Twitter last year. His love for the good knight has proved contagious. At least for me.
I'm only a couple of chapters into the book. I hope to read one a day, perhaps three or four times a week. Just twenty-five pages in, I can tell you that I'm already entranced.
Cervantes' creation has taken on a life of his own. Don Quixote has long held a grip on Western Civilization.
Cervantes' creation reminds me of an old, old tradition within Christendom. However, it's not one that is very well-known in the U.S.
Don Quixote is a fictional "holy fool". Christian history is filled with real life examples.
Here is link to an excellent article about the holy fool tradition in Russian history:
Here's to the holy fools, both past and present.
