"You are in for a treat: 'To know him is to love him.' Therefore it is a joy for me to offer you this encounter with the relatively obscure man whose quiet, steady progression in holiness across a long lifetime let him, at age seventy-seven, suddenly become one of the twentieth century's most important figures. 'The Good Pope,'' as even nonbelievers called him, was the catalyst for great changes in the Church and called the world back from the brink of nuclear disaster, among other notable things. There is much for your soul to feed on between these covers, and yet there is still more to say about this saint for our times than I can squeeze in. Look for more books from me on John!"
Patricia Treece opens her delightful biography of Blessed John XXIII this way, and I have to say that I agree with her assessment of her subject. This modern-day man of such inspiring holiness lived through most of the twentieth century, with all its struggles and fast-paced technological advances, and not only greatly increased in personal holiness but left a tremendous legacy--to the Church and to the world--as well.
I had a hard time choosing a book to review this time around for the Catholic Company book reviewer program. Following a bit of prayer for the Holy Spirit's guidance in my selection, I felt led to choose Patricia Treece's "Meet John XXIII - Joyful Pope and Father to All ." And wouldn't you know it: I couldn't have been more pleased--and spiritually inspired--by this book. Not only was it fascinating to read about how Angelo Roncalli's life unfolded along the path to the Holy See as John XXIII, but Treece's biography is also so well written that it is--no kidding--a page turner.
My favorite thing about this book was definitely John XXIII himself. It is impossible not to like this man, who was both very holy and a very nice person. Reading about the first half of the twentieth century in southeastern Europe was also fascinating from a historical perspective. Finally, the story of John XXIII gave me some new insight into the objectives and mission of Vatican II at its outset, as well as just the smallest peek into the factors that pulled the Council in very different directions.
My only frustration with this book was that I wanted to know more, particularly about the perspective of John's critics. I guess I'll be watching for Treece's next book about him!
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