Work in Progress - by James Martin (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller

In this humorous memoir, New York Times bestselling author and podcast host of The Spiritual Life, Father James Martin tells the story of a busboy, dishwasher, caddy, usher, factory worker, bank teller, and corporate tool and, finally, a Jesuit priest.

"Funny, charming, inspiring and wise--this is a memorable memoir." -- Stephen Colbert

Work in Progress is a snapshot of several years--first as a boy, then as a teenager, and finally as a young adult--of being thrown into a series of jobs for which Martin had zero training. He had never set foot in a restaurant kitchen before working as a busboy and dishwasher; never stepped onto a golf course before working as a caddy; and had never seen a factory floor before working as an assembly-line worker. He almost always felt uncomfortable, unsettled, and uneasy. But, like many of us, he needed the money.

This coming-of-age story is set in the 1960s and 1970s, a lighthearted tale for readers who enjoy personal narratives, and it's unlike anything Father Martin has written before. As he puts it, "This is a spiritual memoir from a different angle ... told 'slant' as Emily Dickinson might say."

Each chapter features photos of memories and milestones throughout Father Martin's young life. If you're an aficionado of snafus, you won't be disappointed. He's not the hero of these stories, more a hapless teenager who learns in each job, even the ones he loathes, something about the value of work, about what it means to be an adult, about people, and about life overall.

Work in Progress teaches us small but important life lessons such as:

• work hard and be on time,
• don't be mean, apologize when you need to, and forgive frequently,
• ask if you don't know something,
• don't misuse power,
• pay attention to those who are struggling,
• listen and, above all, be kind.

Martin shares, "My summer jobs, crazy and funny and varied as they were, had something to do with who I am. As we Jesuits would say, the lessons I learned helped to 'form" me."

Review Quotes

"To my shelf of well-worn books by Father James Martin, I add his moving, hilarious new memoir about summer jobs. With a keen eye for detail, he renders his quest as swashbuckling as any action tale--and as unlikely. The kid who busses tables at fifteen and puffs spliffs as an Ivy-Leaguer who'll land in the corporate world. But a chance encounter with the late Trappist monk Thomas Merton transforms this business dude into a novice in the Society of Jesus. There is no greater quest or romance than this. Martin's graceful storytelling voice and keen eye for detail makes this his most layered and lyrical effort. I hope he calls it Portrait of the Artist as a Young Jesuit. Like Joyce's book, I suspect Martin's will garner a cult readership."

"I love any book about a dog-fearing paperboy, wasp-stung lawnmower, bumbling busboy, nearly-electrocuted caddy, popcorn-popping usher, bored assembly-line worker, sunburnt bank teller, pot-smoking undergrad, and ambitious 'corporate tool' ...who ends up a priest! Funny, charming, inspiring and wise -- this is a memorable memoir." - Stephen Colbert

A theologian's sentimental education.

Martin, well known as a progressive Jesuit activist and editor at large of the magazine America, grew up in a suburb of Philadelphia in the 1970s and '80s, a time when it was expected that a teenager would have a summer job--and, he writes, more than 58% of teens did in 1978, when he graduated from high school. These jobs were almost always unskilled, and without much transferrable knowledge: Being a busboy doesn't teach you much about working a menial factory shift. Martin writes of the series of indignities that accompanied his résumé building: being screamed at for clearing a table prematurely, shafted by customers refusing to pay on his paper route, abandoned during an electrical storm while caddying. Though he's not exactly sunny all the time--and his narrative takes a dark turn when tragedy strikes--Martin has a warm nostalgia for the era and most of the things that came with it, from boxes of Scholastic books and the Weekly Reader in grade school to tooling around on a bicycle long after dark and "drinking water from a backyard hose." Granted, he notes, there were some demerits: People hadn't learned yet to wear seat belts, and kids played with dangerous toys like lawn darts. One summer job leads to another, usually better one in Martin's account until, after going through a pot-hazy, beer-drenched college education at Wharton (and how many road-to-Damascus memoirs quote Duran Duran and Neil Young?), he winds up working for a Fortune 500 company that threatens daily to kill his soul--a catalyst for quitting to become a priest. Martin offers valuable lessons from his experience, not just in the virtues of hard work and collegiality, but also in insisting, with John Paul II, on "the dignity of labor and the rights of workers."

A pleasure for those who remember the lazy, hazy days of summer jobs at two bucks an hour. - Kirkus, Kirkus

Martin (In All Seasons for All Reasons) amplified his inclusive message for LGBTQIA+ Catholics by joining Twitter in 2010. Today, the Jesuit priest 's followers are modest in number by social media standards--less than 300,000. However, his public recognition has grown dramatically in recent years, having received mainstream commentary opportunities with major broadcasters as well as warm and encouraging receptions from Pope Francis and Pope Leo. His memoir provides the backstory of the Jesuit priest renowned for his message of acceptance to the queer community. He walks through the diverse list of teenage and post-college jobs that, he argues, shaped his adult character. While the last chapters explore his decision to enter seminary and become a priest, this is primarily the story of bygone America with its soda jerks and paperboys and does not focus on Martin's popular message of inclusion. It's much more a biographical Chocolate War than Merton's The Seven Storey Mountain. VERDICT This memoir will circulate well among Catholic readers or as a book group selection for those nostalgic for the bicentennial-era United States. - Jeffrey Aubuchon, Library Journal

In this sweet memoir, Jesuit priest Martin (Learning to Pray) reminisces about the summer jobs that prepared him for his calling. Aiming "to remind readers of the ways that grace works through all our lives, no matter who we are or how ordinary our daily activities may seem," Martin describes his employment, starting at age 13, delivering newspapers, followed by jobs bussing tables at an ice cream parlor, ferrying golf equipment, and showing movie theater patrons to their seats. Meanwhile, he immerses readers in the wonders of American boyhood during the 1960s and '70s, recalling watching the moon landing with wide-eyed awe and days spent playing outdoors that spurred an early fascination with nature. Guided by his parents' strong work ethics, Martin attacked each of his teenage jobs with the mantra "How hard could it be?" and resolved to only apply for positions for which he had no previous experience. With humility and good humor, Martin discusses how, for example, the patience required to master an industrial mop has served him in the clergy, and gets candid about his regrets, including his unkindness to a developmentally disabled colleague at the movie theater. Heartfelt and refreshingly self-aware, this humble portrait of a priest-in-progress will charm readers. - Publisher's Weekly