For all intents and purposes, author John Powers hasn't been a South Sider for 40 years.

But don't tell him that.

Home may be Lake Geneva, Wis., these days, and work finds him mostly on the road giving motivational talks, but that "South Side mentality" --as he likes to call it -- never really goes away.

"There's a kind of honesty there that's rare today," says Powers, a Mount Greenwood native whose 1977 novel "The Unoriginal Sinner and the Ice-Cream God" has just been re-released by Loyola Press and whose new nonfiction book, "Odditude," comes out in March.

He returns to those roots Jan. 5 when he appears at a fundraiser to rebuild the playlot in Mount Greenwood Park, which was near is his boyhood home.

"South Siders run out everything (when they're discussing something). They never back off," he says. Some would say "they're abrupt, arrogant, but it's also unusual because you always know where you stand."

Powers drew national attention in 1973 with the publication "The Last Catholic in America," a comic novel drawn from his grade school days at St. Christina School. It was the first in what is sometimes called the "Eddie Ryan trilogy," the most famous of which was "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?" based on Powers' experiences at Brother Rice High School and the basis for the still-running play of the same name.

All three books had been out of print for a decade before Loyola Press resurrected them last year. Although largely a publisher of curriculum books, the Jesuit-owned company launched a "trade" line a few years ago and is probably best known for "The Gift of Peace" by Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, says Joe Durepos, Loyola's senior acquisitions editor.

Durepos says he was surprised to learn Powers' books had gone out of print.

"I think John is one of the most underrated writers out there," he says. "He just captures that South Side Irish-Catholic (feeling)."

Powers, 61, came of age in the early- and mid-1960s, when the Catholic church was not challenged, neighborhoods were identified by parish names and dads were mostly working stiffs scratching out a living.

Although he jokes about being a mediocre student who failed geometry and could have been tossed out of Brother Rice for not attending summer school, the light bulb finally went on in his senior year. He found himself on the honor roll for the first time, but it almost wasn't enough.

He was rejected by 35 colleges before finally being accepted by Loyola University, he says. His days as a commuter student attending Loyola's downtown Chicago campus provided the basis for "The Unoriginal Sinner" book.

"My parents always told me I was going to college," Powers says. "They said, 'Your inheritance is going to be a college education.'"

Not only did he graduate, he went on to complete master's and doctorate degrees at Northwestern University.

For a while he taught fifth grade at his alma mater, St. Christina. He recalls that parents in those days rarely questioned teachers, but found subtle ways of imparting their feelings.

"One parent would come in and say, 'My son certainly has a lot of homework.' And then another said the same thing, and another," he says, laughing. "I got the message."

In addition to the three "Catholic" novels, he also penned "The Junk-Drawer Corner-Store Front-Porch Blues" in 1992, did a stint as a college professor at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago and, in 2002, acted in a one-man play "Life's Not Fair ... So What!"

His new book, "Odditude," stems from his career as a motivational/inspirational speaker. Publisher HCI is responsible for the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" series and specializes in self-help-style books.

"('Odditude') focuses on what makes you special, what makes you unique," says Powers, the married father of two daughters. "I do two things -- I talk and I write -- and this is a cross between the two."

And he takes that positive thinking seriously, strenuously trying not to slide into an opinion that might not have a gracious spin.

"I work hard at (not being cynical or negative) all the time," he says.

For example, is he a Cubs or a Sox fan? Both, he says. When told that seems a bit of a stretch for a native South Sider, the worst he'll say is, "Well, we did wonder what kind of jobs (Cubs fans) had if they could take the whole day off to go to a game."

What does he think of the current state of the Catholic church, where priests are no longer "infallible" and members openly question doctrine? He won't discuss it, and won't even say if he still goes to church.

"I consider myself an entertainer, not a theologian," Powers says. His philosophy is "love your neighbor," and people will just have to read between the lines to learn more than that, he says.

As for whether he'll ever return to fiction writing, he's equally non-committal.

"I don't know," he says. "I do a lot of speaking, and I really enjoy that. But writing's tough!"

Karen Sorensen may be reached at
ksorensen@dailysouthtown.com
or (708) 633-6702.

What: "An Evening with John Powers"

When: 8 p.m. Jan. 5

Where: Beverly Arts Center, 2407 W. 111th St., Chicago

Cost: $25

Information: Call (773) 445-3838 or visit mountgreenwoodpark.com or beverlyartcenter.org