Hope

The Autobiography

By: Pope Francis, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Carlo Musso, Richard Dixon - translator

Narrated by: Peter Ganim

Pope Francis originally intended this exceptional book to appear only after his death, but the needs of our times and the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope have moved him to make this precious legacy available now.

Hope is the first autobiography in history ever to be published by a Pope. Written over six years, this complete autobiography starts in the early years of the twentieth century, with Pope Francis’s Italian roots and his ancestors’ courageous migration to Latin America, continuing through his childhood, the enthusiasms and preoccupations of his youth, his vocation, adult life, and the whole of his papacy up to the present day.

In recounting his memories with intimate narrative force (not forgetting his own personal passions), Pope Francis deals unsparingly with some of the crucial moments of his papacy and writes candidly, fearlessly, and prophetically about some of the most important and controversial questions of our present times: war and peace (including the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East), migration, environmental crisis, social policy, the position of women, sexuality, technological developments, the future of the Church and of religion in general.

Hope includes a wealth of revelations, anecdotes, and illuminating thoughts. It is a thrilling and very human memoir, moving and sometimes funny, which represents the “story of a life” and, at the same time, a touching moral and spiritual testament that will fascinate readers throughout the world and will be Pope Francis’s legacy of hope for future generations.

Critic reviews

“Hope vividly recreates the colorful world where the young Jorge Mario Bergoglio grew up.”—The New York Times

“Vivid and sensitive . . . Francis is keenly conscious of his roots in a history of migration and a society of very diverse cultural strands. . . . Powerful and moving . . . This book is at its best when the Pope speaks directly from his first-hand experience of contact with the vulnerable, and he has a gift for bringing these encounters vividly to life.”—The New Statesman

“[An] in-depth look at the life of the pontiff . . . Readers will find this autobiography replete with intriguing and sometimes surprising and even disturbing stories from the pope’s life. . . . Francis’ work is honest, interesting, and of historic value.”—Kirkus Reviews

“For fans of Conclave, there’s quite the inside story of the real thing in 2013 in the Pope’s new autobiography. . . . The Pope who emerges from this book is an attractive figure.”—The London Standard

Pope Francis teaches as he tells his vita !

This autobiography begins in a unique way and goes on to reveal the intelligence, enthusiasm, integrity, and humor of a loving leader. I have already recommended it to many friends.

Pope Francis was one of a kind

Pope Francis was a truly humble man. Reading his life story made me feel like I knew him, despite never having met. I believe Hope is worth reading, whether you're Catholic or not.

Humble

Beautiful biography. Pope Francis has led such an interesting life. He is an absolute humble and gracious man. God bless him!

“So … tell me about…”

I love Pope Francis for innumerable more reasons now, but most of all, because he is the person for whom you want to keep filling the coffee cups and talking late into the night, stoking the conversation on. Inspiring. Endearing. Every minute with this story was well spent and fruitful.

For Believers and nonbelievers

“Hope” I cannot express how loving, hopeful and encouraging it is addressing all my concerns about the Catholic Church, the faith and the future! I teared up in practically every chapter because of the tenderness in which it was written 🕊️