Facing the Tank. A carefully observed, comedic novel of cathedrals, clergy and genteel, country town living

Patrick Gale's early novel, FACING THE TANK is a witty, eccentric story of clergy, scandal and English eccentrics 'Made me laugh out loud' Sunday TimesAmerican Professor Evan Kirby, author of a successful book on Hell, moves to Barrowcester in the south England expecting to find the very epitome of a cathedral society of gentle clergymen and coffee mornings. What he encounters instead is a small city thrown into chaos by scandalous pregnancies, a Satanic summoning of a young feral girl and strange, supernatural events that threaten to rock the hitherto genteel, church going community.'Gale speedily unleashes his merrily black mischief.
The uncovering of the sadness behind the doilies and twinsets is in the best tradition of black humour' ObserverWhat readers have loved about FACING THE TANK:'A brilliantly observed story, dark, humorous, sometimes subtly, sometimes uproarious' ? ? ? ? ?'It takes as the main theme a black comedy of religious experience and small town life, and applies several hard twists to the plot. Like Trollope's Barchester, but with drugs, AIDS and miracles' ? ? ? ? ?