POPES, THE

This is a masterful summary of the complex, sometimes scandalous, occasionally profound and always significant story of the occupants of the Chair of Peter. The early Popes, and so many anti Popes, were particularly interesting, as I knew very little about them. As there are so many, the majority of Popes get a scant discussion, but it can certainly whet the appetite to find out more.

a most important book. Very well researched.

Good book, but my copy (paperback version) doesn't have any of the illustrations. There is a "List of Illustrations" section at the front of the book, but none of the illustrations are actually in the book. Disappointing.

Too many popes to deal with and too little time to devote to each.

An extremely well written book about the history of the Popes!

Lots of facts in very quick successionq

This is a great source for history! I am just beginning, but am enjoying it very much. So glad that you are carrying this author. I like the choice of buying new, or gently used. Mine was in great condition for used...

Although I identify as atheist, I have been raised in a very catholic family and region. I also have always been a bit of a history buff. Coming from this background, I readily picked up The Popes by Viscount Norwich, and was not disappointed.When offering a compilation of biographies and historical information, there is always a risk of it becoming a dry, repetitive read. Not here. The author manages to weave an interesting history. He provides enough detail and anecdotes to offer variety, and glosses over popes and passages where appropriate. Counterpopes and the legendary female pope are also included. When various sources give contradictory information, he mentions this and explains which account he prefers and wh. He is also critical about characters and actions, listing positive aspects as well as more negative ones. Popes are only human, after all, and in hindsight some decisions were more beneficial than others.The author has delivered an entertaining account of the popes since the founding of the church. Because the book was first published in 2012, it is not entirely up-to-date, but this was not bothersome to me.

This book is an absolute delight. Written in a clear, accessible but elegant style John Julius Norwich manages to write a straightforward history of the papacy that manages to entertain as well as inform. Obviously a single volume covering over 2000 years of an institution has to be selective and take a broad brush approach to his subject to avoid it becoming a tedious list, but the author does this deftly. (There is a complete list of all the Popes and a useful bibliography included, along with some necessary maps.)What I loved was being given enough of the surrounding political, martial and cultural events to understand the context of what was going on without it ever becoming wearisome. It conveys the Papacy and its place within the history of the time and allows the reader to see and comprehend the bigger picture easily. The author not only has a lovely way with words but also has a great eye for the details that illuminate the characters and a clear awareness that history is far, far stranger than fiction.If, like me, you only had a peripheral interest in the Papacy - I was baffled by how all the Pope and Anti-Pope struggles occurred- you may have not considered buying this book. Do change your mind. This is a great read that gives a huge insight into the evolution of Europe. It is an illuminating, entertaining canter through history that frequently had me laughing out loud and contains far more than the title suggests.

A frustrating read. The author has an irritatingly high brow tone which alienated me. He tells lots of sensational tales but then doesn’t really explain anything & presumes so much knowledge. He glosses over and misses out so many things that perhaps he considers obvious in his expertise but which someone buying this book (ergo not an expert) doesn’t know. For example; how do popes take the names they do; why do they have two names? Not even mentioned.Every page I read had to be referenced to Wikipedia / google for a fuller understanding - I ended up feeling that the book was frustrating me with silly stories and poor explanation; Wikipedia gave me far more concise and clearly explained information.There are better books out there on the subject. This one gets so much praise as it seems to cover so much, so it’s the ‘go to’ book, but really it’s not that great.I am very widely read and it’s exceptionally rare that I give up on a book, but I didn’t get past page 150 I’m afraid.

I have read several other books by JJN and enjoyed them immensely. This one I find complicated and in some places just plain confusing. Speaking for myself, I think the book would have benefited from more explanations, details, maybe diagrams, maps of the different eras and governing populations. But I will read it to the end...

A very fine unbiased book to read. It never bores you with to much detail. You can look up one or the other pope, or just rear right through. It clearifies a lot of things you did not know about being a Pope. And if you want to dig into one of the subjects, you can always search for a more detailed book on the person you are interested in. But watch out, sometimes being a Pope can get nasty. The floor under my chair sometimes was clogged with blood and intestines ;-)

This is almost as much a history of the last 2000 years, particularly of Europe, as it is a history of the Papacy. John Julius Norwich has taken a chronological approach to this work, starting with St Peter, and proceeding through each Pope, and anti - pope, to the present day papacy of Benedict XVI. Whilst enjoyable and informative reading, this book made it rather clear to me how much of European history is vague or unknown to me, and has definitely prompted further reading for the future. Inevitably in a book of just over 450 pages, each Pope and each period only receives a few pages at the most. For example the period of the French Revolution, and the advent of Napoleon, both with enormous implications for Catholicism and for the Popes of the time, is covered in just 10 pages.There were of course, all kinds of Popes - over 280 to date - and they are nearly all described in these pages - some were concerned primarily with the spiritual, some were much more interested in temporal power and diplomacy. Some were treated abominably, or as puppets, by the Kings, Emperors and Princess of the day, some were held in reverence and awe. Norwich does not have a particular axe to grind and from my limited knowledge of European history it appears that he is being fair throughout - generally sympathetic to Catholisism, and admiring of many individual popes, whilst not failing to criticise those whose actions weakened the Roman Catholic Church's moral or political standing.This is a an interesting book, which for me at least, will open up further lines of study - just ordered a book on the italian Renaissance as a result.