On fire for God Fear, shame, poverty, and the making of the Christian Right--a personal history

Review by Booklist Review

Hesse (Runner's High, 2021) was born into an Iowa family that believed strong faith and hard work would yield prosperity. By the mid-1980s, Iowa farmers struggled to hold onto their businesses as crop surpluses led to plummeting profit margins, and their land was often overleveraged. These trying economic times hit Hesse's parents' waterbed retail business hard, matching the changing fortunes of their customer base and neighbors, and debt, infidelity, and depression would factor into the end of the marriage. Meanwhile, Hesse attended religious services and camps, where he was told to hide his feelings and identity. His life was destined for a course similar to that of his parents, until he renounced his beliefs and began a journey of self-discovery. On Fire for God is a moving memoir of both introspection and catharsis that also provides social commentary on the power of belief and how religion can lead to indoctrination. Hesse's confrontation with a painful past is intriguing and poignant, and his spiritual evolution and personal transformation offer a model for a way forward for lost souls.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Journalist Hesse (Runner's High) delivers an eye-opening account of his evangelical upbringing in Mason City, Iowa, that sheds light on a community coping with destitution, drug abuse, and spiritual despair. In evocative prose, Hesse traces the rise of the Christian right in the mid-to-late 20th century, when self-described prophet Lonnie Frisbee, for example, led "thousands of hippies into the Pacific Ocean to be baptized." Along the way, Hesse weaves in searing personal anecdotes about his own religious trauma and draws shrewd parallels to The Music Man (whose fictional setting was inspired by Mason City), comparing silver-tongued con artist Harold Hill to the religious leaders who exploited fear and ignorance in his community as deregulation and the decline of labor unions hollowed out core Iowa industries like farming. Most powerful are Hesse's descriptions of being made to feel borderline irredeemable at Pentecostal church camp, his shame manifesting as a demon named Caldonia whom he wrestled with well into adulthood. In the end comes acceptance, with Hesse expressing gratitude for his time in a struggling corner of the world. Readers who've wrestled with their faith or finding home will find this inspiring. Agent: Laura Nolan, Aevitas Creative Management. (Jan.)

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Review by Library Journal Review

Hesse (Runner's High) grew up as a zealous evangelical Pentecostal Christian in Mason City, IA, a dying farm town, but has since left the faith. He argues that evangelical Christianity promises rewards to its followers, but these benefits rarely appear to the faithful masses. As support, Hesse explores his own experiences, the history of the Christian right, and the farm crisis in the Midwest, which reduced residents' standard of living. He also delves into evangelical beliefs such as prosperity theology, purity culture, martyrdom, apocalyptic thinking, and the Protestant work ethic, focusing his analysis on the intersection of Christianity and politics. Additionally, Hesse reflects on the psychological trauma from his own childhood religious experiences, including constant apocalyptic thinking and preoccupation with Satanic corruption. Hesse struggled until he moves away from his hometown and found his calling as a writer. Later, he revisited Mason City to conduct interviews with family and friends for this book, reflecting on his relationships and desire for validation and acceptance. VERDICT An introspective memoir of a religious life. Recommended for readers interested in the impact of the religious right.--Rebekah Kati

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

A tale of rural misery, religious charlatans, and the rise of MAGA Christianity. "Nothing makes me angrier than a rigged game where the participants are told it's easy to win yet end up walking away with their heads bowed in shame," writes journalist Hesse. That's what the "prosperity gospel" preachers of his rural Iowa youth promised: Trust in God, and riches will follow--and be sure to leave a healthy donation in the collection plate. Far-right Republicans have conned pastors and parishioners in turn to believe that Jesus loves the rich and despises the poor, says the author. A swirl of influences is in play: the loss of jobs and family farms to megacorporations and offshoring, the resentment of working-class whites when nonwhites received the same welfare benefits (aka "government assistance") that they did, and a widespread feeling among rural people that they'd been left behind. There's not a lot new in that analysis, but at least it comes from firsthand experience. It might be thought of as the antidote to J.D. Vance'sHillbilly Elegy. Indeed, Hesse has some choice words for Vance, who, he holds, "ignores all the factors increasingly narrowing the options of working-class people, and only recognizes the shortcomings of the individual." It's the prosperity gospel all over again. Hesse lands many good points, linking the Jesus Freak movement of the early 1970s to the antinomian tendencies of QAnon and MAGA, filtered through erstwhile intermediaries like Rush Limbaugh, "the corpulent clone of Billy James Hargis." Hesse's book wants to be a memoir, a history of religious flimflammery, and a study of how the predatory, politicized Christianity of today came about; some of the narrative goes deep, but some just skims the surface. A good effort all the same, it asks a meaningful question: "Have you ever seen Donald Trump emit a hearty belly laugh?" Worthy of attention for its personal view of an "American theocracy" in the making. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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