Pope John Paul II

Further reading

Books by John Paul II

In chronological order:

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Meditations and philosophy

• Memory and Identity - Conversations at the Dawn of a Millennium, published by Rizzoli (22 March 2005) ISBN 0847827615 - conversational presentation of John Paul II's views on many secular topics, such as evil, freedom, contemporary Europe, nationalism, and democracy. Included in the book is also a transcript of the Pope's discussion on his assassination attempt in 1981.
• Rise, Let Us Be On Our Way, Warner Books (28 September 2004),ISBN 0446577812 - mostly addressed to his bishops, however a rich source of inspiration for everyone having knowledge of Christianity.
• Pope John Paul II - In My Own Words, Gramercy (6 August 2002) ISBN 0517220849 - best-seller, a compilation book of carefully selected words and prayers of John Paul II, compiled by Anthony F. Chiffolo.
• Gift and Mystery - On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination, Image (20 April 1999) ISBN 0385493711 - about being a priest.
• The Theology Of The Body; Human Love In The Divine Plan, Pauline Books and Media, 1997, ISBN 0819873942 - a compilation of weekly lectures from 1979 to 1984 to married couples about the deep meaning of human love and sexuality.
• Crossing the Threshold of Hope, Knopf (19 September, 1995), ISBN 0679765611 - edited by Vittorio Messori. John Paul II makes many of his teachings and ideas more accessible.
• The Way to Christ - Spiritual Exercises, HarperSanFrancisco (7 October 1994) ISBN 0060642165 - conversational presentation of two retreats Karol Woyt?a gave 10 years apart before becoming pope. In that time he served in Kraków as bishop and cardinal. A direct and touching book.
• Person and Act, by Karol Wojtyla; before his papacy, (28 February 1979) ISBN 9027709858. In depth phenomenological work tied to Thomistic Ethics, apparently there is a bad translation entitled "the Acting Person".
• Love and Responsibility, by Karol Woyt?a before his papacy, Ignatius Press; Rev. edition (1 April 1993) ISBN 0898704456 - in depth philosophical analysis of human love and sexuality.

Plays by John Paul II

• Our God's Brother, Ave Maria Press (September 1995) ISBN 0877938709 - this play was written by Karol Wojtyla in Poland during World War II when the Nazis were suppressing Polish arts (1944).
• The Jeweller's Shop: A Meditation on the Sacrament of Matrimony, Passing on Occasion into a Drama, Arrow, (17 March 1980) ISBN 009140861X.

Both of these plays were filmed:

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• Our God's brother (in Polish: Brat naszego Boga), 123 min, 1997, colour, directed by Krzysztof Zanussi. IMDb entry.
• La Bottega dell'orefice (English: The Jeweller's Shop), 88 min (Canada)/95 min (USA), 1988, colour, directed by Michael Joseph Anderson. IMDb entry.

Poetry by John Paul II

• The Poetry of Pope John Paul II, USCCB (1 September 2003) ISBN 1574555561 - poems written in the summer of 2002.
• The Place Within: The Poetry of Pope John Paul II, Random House; 1st edition (25 October 1994) ISBN 0679760644 - lyrical poetry

Biographies of Pope John Paul II

• Witness to Hope, George Weigel, HarperCollins (1999, 2001) ISBN 006018793X.
• Man of the Century: The Life and Times of Pope John Paul II, Jonathan Kwitny, Henry Holt and Company, 1997.
• His Holiness: John Paul II and the History of Our Time, Carl Bernstein and Marco Politi, Doubleday, 1996.
• Pope John Paul II: The Biography, Tad Szulc, Scribner, 1995.