Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II led the Catholic Church during a time of great upheaval.

During his pontificate (1978-2005), the Soviet Union and the Berlin Wall collapsed, and great strides were made for freedom worldwide.

The first non-Italian pope in more than four centuries, the Polish John Paul was also the very first Slavic pope ever.

As a young man, he experienced Nazi persecution and had to train for the priesthood in a seminary conducted ""underground"" - because Catholic religious training for vocations had been outlawed.

At the same time, he remained active in the Polish anti-Nazi insurgency and helped Jews escape the Holocaust.

Later, as pontiff, he forged new relationships between the Roman Catholic Church and Jewish denominations worldwide and played a pivotal role in the downfall of the Soviet Union.

This engaging and visually appealing biography follows the arch of the pontiff's life in the context of world politics.