Pope Francis Takes the Bus, and Other Unexpected Stories (Servant Books)

It's been a while since I've read a book about Pope Francis. I was suffering what I have dubbed "Francis Fatigue." Now, don't misunderstand me. I love our Holy Father. It just seems like every other Catholic book since he was elected Pope has been about him. And while some of the books have been great, others have been lackluster. When I heard about the book Pope Francis Takes the Bus, and Other Unexpected Stories, I wasn't sure what to expect, but I thought it might be time to end my moratorium on Pope Francis books.

The book is divided into eighty unique stories and organized in a clever A-to-Z format. The only letters in the alphabet not included are X and Z. (I guess Pope Francis can't play the xylophone and doesn't like zebras.) The stories cover a large swath of Pope Francis' life. We learn about his parents and his time before being a priest. We also learn about his early time as a priest and new things he is doing as the pope, like no longer making daily Mass private. All the stories are quick and interesting, but two really jumped out to me. The first one was called "Girlfriend." Apparently, while Pope Francis was still a seminarian, he became infatuated with a girl he met at a wedding. He definitely struggled with the decision on whether to return to seminary or marry her, but we all know the ultimate decision he made. The other one was called "Emotions." It talked about how he when he experiences something very emotional, like being elected Pope, he completely freezes for a minute or two while everything is processing. I can relate to reacting like that as well.

I have read a lot of biographies on Pope Francis, and while they all contain the same basic information on his life, they are all told from a different perspective. Unfortunately, a lot of people feel they don't have time to read a full biography or worry they might get bogged down in details. Pope Francis Takes the Bus is the perfect solution for those who are biography-averse. It gives us bite-sized portions of Pope Francis' life in an easy to read format that makes you fly through the pages. I was able to read this book in a little over an hour. It painted a very human picture of a great man and is a book that is worth sharing with your family and friends.

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