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BOOK REVIEW: Bringing Dante down to earth Kathleen LaCamera, Aug 17, 2007
Dante: A Brief History Peter Hawkins Blackwell Publishing, 2006, paperback, 200 pgs.
By Kathleen LaCamera Special Contributor
The medieval Italian poet Dante is one of those literary greats who many believe only really clever, highly educated people can appreciate. Fortunately, Peter Hawkins, a self-confessed Dante lover, has written a little gem of a book that gives us less-scholarly types a glimpse into Dante's world and into his masterpiece, The Divine Comedy -- one of the most influential visions of heaven, hell and all that's in between that has ever been written.
Dr. Hawkins also explores what this 14th-century poem still has to say about our 21st-century lives. A funny, touching and passionate introduction to Dante that engages readers from page one, the book opens with the question: "Is Dante worth the effort?"
Dr. Hawkins, a gifted scholar and communicator who teaches at some of America's top universities, says the answer is "yes," and I heartily agree. As a part-time hospital chaplain, no one needs to convince me of Dante's relevance.
Only recently I was called out in the middle of the night to give last rites to a man dying from bone cancer. His family members were beside themselves trying to understand what they could do to ease his pain and agitation.
It was Dante's journey from death to hell and finally to heaven, as revealed by Dr. Hawkins' skilled reflection and interpretation, that came to mind as I read Scripture and prayed with this man and his family. Dante reminded me of the most important thing I could do in his last moments: be present and be company for the journey.
This book represents Dr. Hawkins' effort to translate a lifetime of passion and scholarship into a highly readable, most-satisfying encounter with this master artist/theologian.
Anyone who has ever contemplated life, death and beyond will find treasures and wisdom in this slim volume.
Ms. LaCamera, a clergy member of the New York Annual and British Methodist conferences, is an American freelance writer in Manchester, England.
Dr. Hawkins also explores what this 14th-century poem still has to say about our 21st-century lives. A funny, touching and passionate introduction to Dante that engages readers from page one, the book opens with the question: "Is Dante worth the effort?" 
