John Peter Pham's "Heir of the Fisherman" is the latest in a series of books about the Conclave, the centuries-old ritual of Papal death and succession, a ritual we just witnessed two months ago. What distinguishes this book from similar books (e.g., John Allen's "Conclave") is that its writing style is more scholarly/academic (so it is not an easy read for non-academics) than Allen's book, which is more 'pop' and written in plain English so that lay audience could pick it up quickly. Like Allen's, it describes the process of Papal death and succession, the issues and politics at play, and also has the profiles of the leading Papal candidates (papabile).

However, Pham's book has its unique features as well, such as a detailed explanation on the evolution of Papal elections over two thousand years (Papal election supposed to be more democratic and participatory during early Church period, where all citizens of Rome could cast their ballots for the new Pope, compared with today, where only 120 cardinals under the age of 80 could vote on it). It also has a detailed description of all Papal elections in 20th century and the issues/politics behind each of them. One would understand that the struggle between liberal/reformist wing of the Catholic Chuch versus the conservative/traditionalist wing is nothing new, it has been around for ages, probably since the beginning of the Church.

I would recommend interesting readers to read this book (along with Allen's) to get the understanding of what the Conclave is all about. The downsides of the book (that's why it's 4 stars instead of 5), are: 1) Some of the rituals described are out-of-date and no longer used by the Church today, and the author does not point out this fact clearly (such as: the use of a silver hammer by the cardinal Carmelengo to verify the Pope's death, and the use of the portable Papal throne (sedia gestatoria) and the Papal crown (the tiara) during the new Pope's inaguration) and 2) Some of the events described are repetitive, often the same events were described in two separate chapters, the book needs a better editor.

But overall, it is a great book for those who want to understand the Conclave. The book should not be shelved too quickly, since given that the current Pope is already at an advanced age, we might see another Conclave within the next few years, with the same issues and mostly the same Papal candidates at play.

In the last six weeks or so, I've read a whole raft of books about papal elections. Some were decent, if dated, summaries. A few were full of strong feelings and distinctive language. A couple were worth remembering, while others dissipated as quickly as the white smoke from the Sistine Chapel itself. But out of them all, it turns out I saved the best for last: John-Peter Pham's "Heirs of the Fisherman."

At first glace, this book seems a lot like the rest. Even the organization and structure is remarkably similar to many of the others: a quick review of the history of papal elections; a focus on the conclaves of the twentieth century; a look at the new conclave rules introduced by John Paul II in "Universi Dominici gregis"; a rundown of the "grand electors," or Cardinals most likely to be influential in the then-expected conclave; and finally, thumbnail portraits of the leading *papabile,* circa 2004. None of this is particularly exceptional.

What raised this book in my estimation above the previous frontrunner (John L. Allen's "Conclave") is John-Peter Pham's general skill, not just as an explainer of church arcana, but as a historian and also as a writer. Allen's guide is a workmanlike book by a skilled journalist. Pham's, on the other hand, reads like a work of history. Allen's is a great survey, and good for the generalist or the person with a casual interest. Pham's is a wealth of insight and analysis with an unusual blend of theology, personality, and even political science added to the mix. I found Allen's book informative and fairly easy to read. Pham's took more effort to absorb, but was fascinating and even entertaining.

Now that the event for which most of these books were prepared has passed, they'll go back on the shelves and start gathering dust. God willing, authors will have plenty of time to prepare a new collection along the same lines before the next conclave. If any of these titles deserve to be kept around after the fact, "Heirs of the Fisherman" gets my vote.