Benedict XVI

Though the election to the papacy of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger stunned the world, very few expressed doubt about the direction in which the allegedly authoritarian pope would lead the Catholic Church. Yet Benedict XVI is likely to surprise those expecting uncritical adherence to the policies of John Paul II, according to a new biography by Michael Rose, author of the best-selling Goodbye, Good Men. The first biographer seriously to probe Benedict’s vast intellectual record, Rose sheds penetrating new light on the man who was Ratzinger.