Joshua

Joshua is a novel in which a gentle carpenter arrives in a modest American town and gradually becomes part of everyday life there. Readers meet the townspeople he touches, whose ordinary routines and hard choices are altered by his plainspoken kindness and the questions he raises.

Because the story works as a parable, the carpenter is widely read as a Christ figure, and the book reflects on faith, compassion and moral conduct through his interactions with people from different walks of life. Its tone is reflective and warm rather than dramatic.

The author, Joseph F. Girzone, was a Catholic priest, and the book was written for readers interested in Christian reflection through fiction.