A-Z Wednesday: "L"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "L." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Lying Awake
Written by Mark Salzman
First published 2000

Description from Good Reads:

Sister John's cloistered life of peace and prayer has been electrified by ever more frequent visions of God's radiance, leading her toward a deep religious ecstasy. Her life and writings have become examples of devotion. Yet her visions are accompanied by shattering headaches that compel Sister John to seek medical help. When her doctor tells her an illness may be responsible for her gift, Sister John faces a wrenching choice: to risk her intimate glimpses of the divine in favor of a cure, or to continue her visions with the knowledge that they might be false-and might even cost her her life.

The book's page at Amazon.com.

And another cover (possibly the British edition?).

I read this gorgeous little novel a few years back and, even though I'm not really terribly religious, I absolutely fell in love with the book and Sister John. The book is beautifully written, and I honestly couldn't put it down until I'd finished. I've always intended to try something else by Mark Salzman, and thanks to A-Z Wednesday, I've given myself a good reminder now.