The Road To Siena: The Essential Biography Of St. Catherine

Book Summary

"The dynamic 14th century woman who fed the poor, challenged bishops and kings, and perhaps saved the papacy. " Her influence was felt throughout the kingdoms of Europe, as she enjoyed the confidence of popes, royalty, and most of all, the common people of Italy. Catherine was able to warn a queen, saying: "Instead of a woman, you have become the servant and slave of nothingness, making yourself the subject of lies and of the demon who is their father," while she encourages the wife of a simple tailor: "Clothe yourself in the royal virtues." Her story is told in this landmark biography, first published a century ago and praised by Evelyn Underhill as the best modern biography of a saint ever written. Long out of print, this new edition of Gardner's landmark book has been abridged slightly and supplemented with the reflections of recent biographers, historians, artists, and others--who shed fresh light on what we know about St. Catherine of Siena. ""Our greatest mystics such as Catherine of Siena] were our most real people, our hardest workers, our most feeling exemplars of what it was to live life fully." --Sister Joan Chittister"

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