I would normally have seen this as a great book had it been written by a person other than a Pope. But, compared to other books I've read that have been written by Pontiffs it fell a little short of my expectations. One might consider the other side of the "John Paul Coin" - Albino Luciani or John Paul I - the valiant champion of basic human dignity for women, the handicapped. the remarried, orphans, homosexuals and others whose everyday lives are scorned by doctrine. Two good men - yet, two very different sides of a coin - John Paul II the conservative side and John Paul I the liberal side. I would suggest a peek at Lucien Gregoire's PAUPER WHO WOULD BE POPE - the only existing complete biography of John Paul I

"Conversations at the Dawn Of the Millenium,"is a book to be read and savored,at any time in History.It covers the rise of Christianity in Europe,going back to the early disciples of
Christian thought.
Much is devoted to the Popes native land of Poland.Both the
Nazi's and the Communists set out to destroy the culture of
John Paul's native land.Poland was a Western nation,as was
Czechoslovakia.Their religions and culture was Western.
Although,people growing up in the the 21st Century,saw many
of these countries as satellites of Russia,such was not the case for the people who lived in them.They stuggled to protect
their identidies,which were being eroded in this century.
Pope John Paul ll,lived through the Nazi invasion.He saw the
Jewish ghettoes and the persecutions within the walls.When
the Nazi's left,they were overrun by the Communist Russians.
Through all this, he witnessed the evil of their ideologies.
Their taking away of the indivual's human basic rights
I enjoyed reading about the philosophies in this book of
Wisdom.
All of the books,written simply for the public,explain a true legacy of love toward humankind and his great forgiving
soul.
Also, I wanted to mention"Crossing the Threshold of Hope"
written in 1994 and a best seller.
These two books,have so much in them,they could be compared to a work of Art.You feel you must return and learn and reflect
more.Each time there will be something you did not grasp before,but you do after a second reading.The Pope at a young age witnessed much suffering.Yet his optimimism regarding the human race and individualism was infectious.
I look forward to reading more of his wisdom.He surely had one of the most brilliant minds of the past century and shared it with us whether we be of the Christian Faith or not.The Pope saw the dignity of every person created.John Paul ll was truly 'the people's Pope.