Last Testament

Pope Benedict XVI

Bloomsbury Continuum, 2016
Hardcover, 288 pages $24

Subtitled In His Own Words, this book is based on a series of interviews with journalist Peter Seewald. It’s nearest to an autobiography from the Pope Emeritus who has remained “hidden to the world” in a former convent in the Vatican gardens.

He addresses issues like the “Vatileaks” scandal, the presence of a “gay lobby” within the Vatican and how he dismantled it, his alleged Nazi upbringing and his attempts at cleaning up clerical sexual abuse. On a more personal level he writes with great warmth of Pope Francis, whom he admits has a popular touch, a star quality which he lacks.

Order:  Amazon, Bloomsbury