You might well ask why the world needs yet another book on Francis of Assisi—but this isn’t just any book. Most books about Francis of Assisi can be called hagiography – stories about the “Poor Man of Assisi” that are meant to capture his spirit and edify us, regardless of the truth of the tale. This book, on the other hand, is a history. Author Tom Speier, OFM, sticks to the facts—the day-to-day historical events in the life of Francis, as best we can know them.

Readers might wonder why more colorful details from episodes in Francis’ life, such as him “kissing” the leper, are missing from these pages. But just listen to Francis’s own powerful words in his Testament: “It seemed very bitter for me to see lepers. And the Lord led me among them and I showed mercy to them. And when I left them, what had seemed bitter to me was turned into sweetness of soul and body.” Why try to embellish the spiritual beauty and power of the event as described in Francis’s own words? That’s the difference between hagiography and history, and Fr. Speier shows the plain truth about the life of St. Francis is just as captivating as the myth.

Tom Speier, OFM, is a priest of the Franciscan Province of Saint John the Baptist based in Cincinnati, Ohio. His province assignments have included seminary Professor at Duns Scotus College in Southfield, Michigan, and St. Leonard College in Centerville, Ohio. A graduate of The Franciscan Institute at St. Bonaventure University, Tom founded the Franciscan Internship Program in Spiritual Direction & Directed Retreats; he conducted sessions in Europe, Africa, Asia as well as yearly in the USA. Presently he ministers at the Parish and Newman Center for the University of Cincinnati and presents retreats with Franciscan themes. He resides at the provincial headquarters (or “mother house”) in Cincinnati.