The CLEANER of CHARTRES by SALLEY VICKERS

It's fun to read a novel that makes me want to read all the other novels written by the author. Salley Vickers' The CLEANER of CHARTRES is one of those books. The novel takes place in the town of Chartres where the Chartres cathedral is located. The main character is a lovable young lady named Agnes. Agnes is an orphan who grows up not to be a surgeon, not a famous singer or a famous author. She becomes just an ordinary cleaner who cleans an extraordinary cathedral. She cleans the Chartres Cathedral. Then, she meets other people in the community and cleans for them as well. It's not unusual that one of her clients is mean spirited. This is Madame Beck. She's like Cinderella's stepmother.

It is ironic that Agnes' personal experiences are very complex although her life is very ordinary. The irony and symbols are what make this quiet, gentle novel  as exciting as a fast moving detective story. Agnes' life begins as an orphan. She is left at a nunnery where she grows up with the sisters.

There is one parallel and may be more than one in the novel. Agnes' will have a baby named Gabriel. The nuns will take him and give him away thinking Agnes is too young to have a child. Poor Agnes never sees her baby again. Still, he lives on within her heart. She never forgets him. This is only a little bit of Agnes story. Before the coming of age story ends Agnes will encounter life in a mental hospital. She will find herself blamed for a few wrongs she did not commit. She will also have to live with a horrible mistake she did commit because her thoughts of Gabriel were so strong. However, along the way she will meet many friends and have a strong romance.

Although God's name is not mentioned I felt myself learning more clearly how God uses human instruments to walk with us on life's journey or to help us out of trouble along the way. I think of the instruments as God's angels. Perhaps, Agnes had the same idea because her baby is named Gabriel. The Free Dictionary gives this definition for the name Gabriel. "In the Bible, an angel who explained signs from God and announced the conception, birth, and mission of Jesus to Mary." The author also mentioned Saint Therese of Liseux. depressedandcatholicst-therese-of-lisieux


I liked the novel because of the constant theme of abandonment. Agnes is abandoned at birth. Agnes' son Gabriel and herself are abandoned by the nuns. Their wisdom is faulty when it comes to the birth of Agnes' baby. Another theme is "loss." Agnes lives a life of many losses. One of her friends, Bernard, even commits suicide. Through all of it Agnes remains strong. She keeps doing her duties. She continues to clean the church. Clean Madame Beck's home while Madame Beck complains about everything she does and doesn't do for her. While cleaning she meets Dupere who will become a substitute father in her life. Really, there are too many losses to name here in this review. There is also Piaf. He is the Pekinese which belongs to Madame Picot. I always like pets in a novel.

This is a novel where you're dying to tell the whole story in the review. For me Agnes' life is like the labyrinth in Chartres cathedral. Her life is like a winding maze. Finding herself in the right place where she can really begin to love and be appreciated is a long time in coming. This novel rings true because life is like Tumbleweed in a desert. What and who will come and go in our life is unknown. The only choice is to keep "cleaning;" keep moving along the winding yellow brick road until the opening to the maze is discovered. Then, as Terry McMillan wrote there comes a time to exhale freely knowing  what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. The circumstances are just sweepers used to push me along the road.Chartres Labyrinth,