The Great Reformer

October 20, 2014
Pope Francis is a complex human being, as Catholics are discovering. Ivereigh, a journalist, Catholic commentator, and former advisor to Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, is the ideal papal biographer. He provides a detailed and well-written examination of Pope Francis, starting with his youth in Argentina. Young Jorge, the child of Italian immigrants, was strongly influenced by his grandmother Rosa. She provided him with an ideal example of an intelligent, prayerful woman, and she believed it important to live one’s faith by working for social justice. This relationship, as well as several others, helped the future pontiff open his heart to the poor in his country and, eventually, world-wide. Bergoglio has developed into a pope who shakes things up, does not put up with complacency, and truly believes that faith, lived authentically, can change the world. With its wealth of biographical information that offers an in-depth look at formative influences, this is the best examination of the current pope to date.

This biography enlightens listeners on both Pope Francis's life and the history of the Catholic Church. British journalist Austen Ivereigh provides a detailed and enthusiastic narrative that keeps the facts interesting and engaging. As narrator, he gives justice to the chronicle of important life events that reveal how Pope Francis acquired his current views and became the influential leader he is today. Anyone who wishes to gain a deeper understanding of Jorge Mario Bergoglio the man and to be shown the connection between his history and his actions as a religious leader will not be disappointed, as Ivereigh brings a sensibility that other biographies have not. This will be a smooth and engaging listen, even for the cynical. D.Z. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

January 1, 2015

The 2013 election of Argentine cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to Pope of the Roman Catholic Church was exceptional in itself--he was the first non-European elected Pope in over a millennium and the first ever from the Americas--but it is more noteworthy because his ambitious programs and courageous statements have marked him as different from previous Popes. The early and middle parts of this extremely well-researched work focus on the complexity of Argentina's Jesuit community of the 1950s through the 1990s. Ivereigh chronicles Bergoglio's rapid rise in the Jesuit order in Argentina and his strong commitment, through personal example, to social justice and helping the poor. Controversy was a constant companion through the Argentine Dirty War, church politics, and his time as bishop and cardinal, all of which is explained in great detail. Bergoglio's election to Pope and his planned program for change are elaborately explained as well. The narration by Ivereigh is masterly. VERDICT Highly recommended. ["A meticulous and lovingly written biography that will please both knowledgeable and amateur readers," read the review of the Holt hc, LJ 10/1/14.]--Scott R. DiMarco, Mansfield Univ. of Pennsylvania Lib.

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