Gass

A postmodern masterpiece about fraud and forgery by one of the most venerated novelists of the last century. The Recognitions is a sweeping depiction of a world in which everything that anyone recognizes as beautiful or true or good emerges as anything but: our world. The book is a masquerade, moving from New England to New York to Madrid, from the art world to the underworld, but it centers on the story of Wyatt Gwyon, the son of a New England pastor, who forsakes religion to devote himself to painting, only to despair of his inspiration. In expiation, he will paint nothing but flawless copies of revered old masters--copies, however, that find their way into the hands of a sinister financial wizard by the name of Recktall Brown, who sells them as the real thing. Gwyon's story is only one of many that fill the pages of a novel that is as monstrously populated as the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch. Throughout, William Gaddis's characters preen and scheme and party and toil, pursuing salvation through the debasement of desire. Dismissed uncomprehendingly by the critics on publication in 1955 and ignored by the literary world for decades after, The Recognitions is now recognized as one of the great American novels.

CUA Press is proud to announce the CUA Studies in Canon Law. In conjunction with the School of Canon Law of the Catholic University of America, we are making available, both digitally and in print, more than 400 canon law dissertations from the 1920s to 1960s, many of which have long been unavailable. These volumes are rich in historical content, yet remain relevant to canon lawyers today. Topics covered include such issues as abortion, excommunication, and infertility. Several studies are devoted to marriage and the annulment process; the acquiring and disposal of church property, including the union of parishes; the role and function of priests, vicars general, bishops, and cardinals; and juridical procedures within the church. For those who seek to understand current ecclesial practices in light of established canon law, these books will be an invaluable resource.