Written by: Pope Benedict with Peter Seewald

Published by: Bloomsbury

Price: £16.99

Election as Pope is generally for life – with the spiritual office within the Catholic Church ending with death.

In 2013, after almost eight years, Pope Benedict took the unprecedented step (in modern times) of announcing his retirement. He now lives quietly in a Convent within the gardens of the Vatican City in Rome.

His unprecedented retiral has now been followed by an unprecedented book, seeking to respond to some of the questions that surrounded his papacy and also to account for some of the controversies.

Written in partnership with Seewald, an admired German author on religion, the book is not written in a narrative style, but rather in a transcript ‘question and answer’ fashion, which is unusual.

However, the book is an account of Benedict’s personal faith and an honest account of his struggles during his papacy. The account is also revealing: ill-health was the initial motivation (doctors had advised in 2012 that he could not take another transatlantic flight) amid a realisation that his age meant he did not possess the energy needed to both govern and reform the worldwide Catholic Church. He also seeks to address questions about the controversies of his papacy including how he enraged Muslims with his Regensburg speech and his actions over clerical sexual abuse of children.

The book will undoubtedly have been published with the blessing of Pope Francis, but offers fascinating insights into the decision making machinery behind the papacy and about the spiritual life of both a pope in office and retirement.

This work will appeal to anyone interested in biography and a strong interest in the work of the central Catholic church.