Pagan Babies

This first novel by short-story writer Johnson ( A Friendly Deceit ) regrettably exhibits some of the classic flaws of a debut work: an episodic ``and then . . . and then'' style; telling more than showing (i.e., relentless over-explanation); lack of clear plot development; and an implausible ending. The two main characters, Janice Rungren and Clifford Bannon, meet as third-graders at the Catholic school within Sacred Heart parish in Vyler, a small Texas city, in the 1960s; Janice is the flirt, Clifford the brooding artiste. The accoutrements and environment of the Church are rendered as caricatures: stigmata, First Communion, even the ``pagan babies'' of the book's title--children of undeveloped countries visited by Maryknoll missionaries. Although these religious trappings and customs are amusing or fascinating at times, they're no substitute for a story line. Mental illness, death, personal tragedy, middle-class angst and '60s drug stupor all factor in the plot, though not to advantage. Jancie and Clifford move beyond friendship to intimacy before parting ways; preposterously, they wind up in Atlanta together as adults, she husband-hunting, he more openly gay. Assiduous editing could have rendered both the gay and heterosexual characters more believable. Even the dialogue rings hollow and contrived. (Feb.)