Elmer Gantry is a satirical novel written by American novelist Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 ? January 10, 1951) in 1926 and published by Harcourt in March 1927.

On publication in 1927, Elmer Gantry created a public furor. The book was banned in Boston and other cities and denounced from pulpits across the USA. One cleric suggested that Lewis should be imprisoned for five years, and there were also threats of physical violence against the author.

Elmer Gantry ranked as the number one fiction bestseller of 1927, according to "Publisher's Weekly".

There have been five adaptations of the novel including stage plays, an opera and the 1960 film starring Burt Lancaster as Gantry and Jean Simmons as Sister Sharon Falconer. Read article at Wikipedia