The August/September issue of First Things features Carlos Eire’s review of Francis of Assisi: A New Biography by Augustine Thompson O.P. Here’s an excerpt:

“Among Thompson’s many keen yet painful insights into the historical Francis, one stands out and serves to bind together the entire narrative and to shed light on the discordant history of the Franciscan order: Leadership was an ‘intolerable burden’ to Francis, spiritually, ‘one he wished to be rid of as quickly as possible.’ . . . The stripped-down, bare-bones historical Francis of this biography is at once immensely likeable and deeply disturbing. He is appealing insofar as Thompson makes him seem much more like an ordinary man who accomplished extraordinary things rather than a heaven-sent, self-assured prophet. His befuddlement, his inner turmoil, his inability to control events make him seem not just very human but also much like nearly anyone who is likely to pick up this book.”