Pulitzer Prize Fiction Winner

The Edge of Sadness

by Edwin O'Connor

Summary

A quiet, deeply moving story of a middle-aged priest in a middle-class Irish-American parish in Boston as he struggles with his past alcoholism and a sense of spiritual emptiness.

Historical Context & Significance

O'Connor finally won after being snubbed by the board in 1957; the book is praised for its authentic portrayal of the "ordinariness" of the priesthood.