Benedict XVI: A Life, Volume 1

August 3, 2020
This stimulating yet flawed first volume of German journalist Seewald’s duology, his English-language debut, takes the reader through the first four decades of the life of Pope Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger, including his youth and education under the Nazi regime. Seewald bases his account on interviews with Ratzinger, members of his family, and “one hundred contemporary witnesses.” The early chapters describing Ratzinger’s childhood, including his father’s career as a high-ranking policeman and his mother’s work in the family’s bakery and sometimes as a house servant, are the most successful. Seewald emphasizes Ratzinger as a studious youth—nearly monastic from a very young age—and discusses at length his reading of St. Augustine and Herman Hesse. Unfortunately, those looking for insights into Ratzinger’s relationship with the Nazi state or his thoughts on the actions of the Catholic Church during the rise of Hitler will be disappointed. Seewald avoids these topics and only notes that Ratzinger joined the Hitler Youth when membership was made compulsory by state law. While Catholic readers will enjoy the thorough investigation of Ratzinger’s intellectual development, Seewald fails to place the youth of Pope Benedict XVI in full context.

December 1, 2020

Journalist Seewald writes the first in a two-volume biography of Joseph Ratzinger (b. 1927), detailing his life from birth through his participation in the Second Vatican Council. The author artfully weaves together politics, church history, philosophy, and theology to show how these influenced and shaped the man who would become Pope Benedict XVI. This creates an engaging portrait that engrosses the reader in the subject. No detail of Pope Benedict XVI's life or relevant influences is left out of this thorough biography, including details on his family history as well as discussions of the people, works, and events that influenced him. For example, the author spends several paragraphs describing the life and work of St. Augustine of Hippo. Though this kind of information may be helpful for many readers, it is perhaps not necessary to include in a work as large as this one, which is more likely to appeal to researchers and subject experts than the casual reader. While the book does not shy away from including details on Ratzinger's personal and professional struggles, the overall tone of the work and treatment of the subject is slightly more positive than objective. VERDICT A well-suited biography for an academic or special collection.--Sarah Mazur, Noel Memorial Lib., LA

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.