When 17-year-old Luke Hunter foretells the death of his friend with freakish accuracy, life gets complicated, fast. Everyone in Stokum, his rank little pinprick of a hometown, knows about the premonition and wants to know more. But Luke holds everyone—the local news crew, his buddy Fang, the Polish widow next door—at arm’s length as he lurches through his own personal minefield studded with previously unconsidered existential ponderings, Christian fundamentalists, a missing girl’s frantic mother, and a dream girl who isn’t his. Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet is a darkly comic coming-of-age novel that nails contemporary youth culture and sits comfortably alongside the recent offerings by Miriam Toews and DBC Pierre.

"Ottawa writer Joanne Proulx's debut novel rocks, and her teenage protagonist, Luke Hunter, the reluctant prophet of the title, rules.
This is a great book...it is impossible not to marvel at Proulx's mastery..."
—The National Post

"The beauty of this story is its complete and beguiling faithfulness to Luke's inner world. I felt I was back inside 17, plagued by self-doubt, social blunders and sexual angst, stumbling toward some kind—any kind—of identity...Proulx's message is expertly wrapped in her storytelling. Unaware, you watch Luke, recognize him, worry for him, until gradually you feel his ache, and his aching entry to adulthood, in your bones."
—The Globe and Mail

"Quite simply, brilliant...Proulx has a sure hand that renders Luke's experience painfully, viscerally real."
—The Guardian

"Joanne Proulx's growing-up-in-Michigan novel kicks ass...Luke glows with rage, fear, and horniness...Finally, a growing-up book by someone who actually grew up."
—The Georgia Straight

"The timeless hormonal torrent of the teen years is given its full due by Proulx…powerful fiction."
—The Montreal Gazette

“Every new writer that surfaces so blessed should be cherished."
—The Toronto Star

"Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet is a tour de force."
—The Ottawa Citizen

"…quite simply, brilliant…Proulx has a sure hand that renders Luke's experience painfully, viscerally real. He's funny, convincing and sympathetic, his voice expressing the subtly shifting balance of vulnerable child and diffident teenage boy…the book combines a dry humour with moments that are deeply and unexpectedly affecting. Luke's is a thoughtful coming of age that is, above all, utterly engrossing."
— The Guardian

“If great literature is your religion, read the gospel according to Luke Hunter. This debut novel is walk-on-water magical, a true revelation.”
— Neil Smith, author of Bang Crunch

“Joanne Proulx is a rare talent. Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet is perfectly drawn, with great voice, humour, complexity, and an unforgettable setting.”
—Lauren B. Davis, bestselling author of The Radiant City and The Stubborn Season

“Joanne Proulx’s darkly comic, thoughtful novel nails contemporary youth culture, and a lot more. Here’s a coming-of-age story that’s constantly surprising, at once both wonderfully unfamiliar and true-feeling.”
—Michael Helm, Giller Prize finalist for The Projectionist

“Wow. A coming-of-age novel that doesn’t make me want to go after the author with a two-by-four with a nail at the end of it. Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet is the rarest of things: a well-written, funny, and entertaining first novel.”
—Ray Robertson, author of Moddy Food and Gently Down the Stream

"TALENTED LAUNCH...debut novel displays keen ear and dandy eye...Proulx is...a talented inhabitor of people unlike herself...every new writer that surfaces so blessed should be cherished."
—The Toronto Star

"Ottawa writer Joanne Proulx's debut novel rocks, and her teenage protagonist, Luke Hunter, the reluctant prophet of the title, rules. Forgive me for sounding juvenile, but I can't help myself. This is a great book, and Proulx's rendering of teenage angst is crafted with such precision and compassion that the reader rides the waves of fear, depression and elation that propel Luke's chaotic life, paying little attention to the skill that drives the narrative. But after the breathless, lyric close that leaves Luke on the brink of adulthood, it is impossible not to marvel at Proulx's mastery. The degree of her accomplishment -- it is rare that a novel is so finely realized -- resides largely in the first-person voice that claims this coming-of-age story...With undeniable candour and perfect pitch, Proulx renders Luke's abject tale, his articulation of a life in perpetual crisis and his search for meaning in his uncanny ability to predict death...Her ability to evoke the day-to-day concerns and interior life of a teenager is as uncanny as Luke's own prophesying..."
—The National Post

"An assured first novel... Proulx's inspired opening salvo settles into a detailed, chatty character study. The anecdotal voice is all Luke's, a narrative rippling with author's insight slyly encoded in the hormone itch and cooler-than-thou posturing of a mixed-up teen...The beauty of this story is its complete and beguiling faithfulness to Luke's inner world. I felt I was back inside 17, plagued by self-doubt, social blunders and sexual angst, stumbling toward some kind - any kind - of identity...Proulx's message is expertly wrapped in her storytelling. Unaware, you watch Luke, recognize him, worry for him, until gradually you feel his ache, and his aching entry to adulthood, in your bones."
—The Globe and Mail

"Joanne Proulx’s growing-up-in-Michigan novel kicks ass…Proulx’s big accomplishment is voice; Luke glows with rage, fear, and horniness…Luke’s grudging epiphanies feel real. His halting dialogue, as limited as his interior thoughts are expansive, feels especially real. Finally, a growing-up book by someone who actually grew up."
—The Georgia Straight

"...she fashions a fantastic and unique brand of teenage poetry."
—Quill & Quire

"DEBUT NOVELIST GETS BOY’S VOICE JUST RIGHT: The timeless hormonal torrent of the teen years is given its full due by Proulx, as is the redeeming power of music. But it all seems so against the ultimate odds. These kids are playing for high stakes with little more than fragile self-generated faith in their side. The good news is that in hands as sure as Proulx’s it all makes for powerful fiction."
—The Montreal Gazette

"Smart and punchy..."
—Fast Forward Weekly

"From a writerly point of view, Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet is a tour de force. Proulx’s pitch-perfect recording of adolescent angst that is small-town, male and rooted in the most extraordinary circumstances…is impressive indeed."
—The Ottawa Citizen

"Proulx has a way of painting the perfect picture of Luke while capturing the complexities of teenage and high school life. …[her] writing is smooth, flowing effortlessly from chapter to chapter giving just enough info to keep you wanting more."
—SceneandHeard.ca

1. Luke's death premonitions add an element of the supernatural in an otherwise realistic setting. How does the author make these premonitions feel real?
2. Despite not having a premonition about Astelle Jordon, the missing girl, Luke is certain she is dead. Why might he be pre-disposed to this “certainty”? Why do you think he refuses to touch Astelle's sweatshirt when Mrs. Jordan comes to him for help?
3. Do you think Luke has a good relationship with his parents? Are their efforts at helping Luke effective or not?
4. Throughout the novel, music plays a major role, culminating in Luke's belief in “the distilled hum of a hundred million other souls that plays somewhere just beyond our reach.” Discuss the way music connects Luke to the people around him and offers him a medium to both interpret and express the premonitions and their aftershocks.
5. Readers have expressed dismay with the fact that Luke has sex a second time with Astelle Jordan. When you consider this event in the context of the events proceeding Luke's visit to Astelle's, who do you think Luke is referencing at the end of chapter twenty-four, when he says, “I knew exactly what I was doing, and who I was doing it to”?
6. When Luke and Fang finally discuss the Gandy's Rock climb, each claims to have been saved by the other. What was going on out at the rock? Who was in control of the moment? Why did Fang climb the rock? Were the boys' actions heroic or simply reckless?
7. After the trip to Gandy's Rock, Luke quite literally pins Faith in her car. “I kept my head on her leg and my fingers wrapped around her ankle. She started crying, man was she crying, and I could tell it wasn't just about the frogs. And instead of feeling sorry, I felt a flicker of amazement that someone like me had been able to touch a girl like that. To hurt her. To make her weep.” Why does Faith's crying amaze Luke? What is implied by the phrases “someone like me” and “a girl like that”?
8. After Luke's encounter with the fundamentalists, he finally goes looking for Fang. The author has said that while writing this section, she was surprised by the unexpected appearance of Mrs. Delaney. Were you surprised by Mrs. Delaney's sudden appearance? Was she what you expected? Why do you think she showed up at this point in the book?
9. Toward the end of the novel, when pondering Pastor Ted's salvation efforts, Luke claims he was baptized in Fang's shower. Why does he consider what happened to him in the shower a form of baptism?
10. When Luke finally makes it to Stan's grave, he admits it took him a long time to understand that what he'd really lost when he lost Stan “was nothing more or nothing less than my holiest friend.” Initially, what did Luke think he'd lost when Stan died? What changed his opinion of his loss? Why does he refer to Stan as his “holiest” friend?