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Title: Man of the Century : The Life and Times of Pope John Paul II by Jonathan Kwitny ISBN: 0-8050-2688-6 Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc. Pub. Date: 15 September, 1997 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $30.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.14 (7 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Multi-dimensional view of an astounding man
Comment: Kwitny has written an absorbing biography that is neither hyperventilatingly in awe nor blindly critical of Karol Wojty³a and his pontificate. It's a very human picture we get of an impressive man who has his own blindness (though "shortsightedness" would be a better description).
One thing that stands out is Wojty³a's desire for peace that sometimes leads to interesting contradictions. For example, his interfaith meetings and his desire to heal both the Orthodox/Catholic and the Anglican/Catholic rifts meet real trouble when people realize the Catholic church's stated goal is to convert everyone to Catholicism - "And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation" (Mark 16.15).
It also becomes clear that Wojty³a is an intellectual and sometimes has problems getting his ideas across so that simpletons (read: Reagan and Bush) can understand what he's driving at (i.e., that he's only advocating some portions of capitalism and not the brutal, unchecked Republican capitalism).
Lastly, as the book progresses it becomes increasingly obvious that Wojty³a is one of the rare types that, instead of becoming more and more liberal and tolerant as he grows older, becomes more and more stodgy and conservative.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Classic Study of a Great Man
Comment: Pope John Paul caught the world's attention with his work to end communism in Central Europe. I am not a Catholic, but I have the utmost regard for what this man has accomplished. The title of this book gives away the author's regard for him also. The Americans give credit for the fall of communism to former Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev, especially in the video series 'Biography of the Millennium' done by A&E, but without the Pope's knowledge of the Central Europeans it would have just been a dream of theirs. I read this book with a great deal of relief that it had been published during the Pope's lifetime. He would probably regard the historical oversight of his work with less frustration than many of his supporters.
Rating: 4
Summary: A Flawed, Yet Good Read
Comment: This is, for anybody Catholic or non-Catholic who is interested in the Pope, a good read. But the book is flawed by a full jar of political intrigue. I would buy it, but for the story of the man, not the story of the CIA files on him.
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Title: John Paul II: A Personal Portrait of the Pope and the Man by Raymond Flynn, Robin Moore, Jim Vrabel, Ray Flynn ISBN: 0312266812 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: April, 2001 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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Title: Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II by George Weigel ISBN: 0060932864 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 10 April, 2001 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: Pope John Paul II: Reaching Out Across Borders by Journalists of Reuters ISBN: 0131408038 Publisher: Reuters Books Pub. Date: 18 February, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Pope John Paul II: In My Own Words by Pope John Paul II ISBN: 0517220849 Publisher: Gramercy Pub. Date: 06 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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Title: Pope John Paul II: The Biography by Tad Szulc ISBN: 0684804166 Publisher: Scribner Pub. Date: April, 1995 List Price(USD): $27.50 |
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