Overview

“Carretto’s life, like that of Francis, was a combination of action and contemplation. In his book, I, Francis, Carretto speaks in Francis’ voice, combining biography with what Francis might say to us today.”—Richard Rohr, OFM, Center for Action and Contemplation

The 40^th anniversary edition of an Orbis classic—Francis of Assisi’s spirituality and life explained in an inimitable voice that could only be his own, except that it was Carretto’s.

“I was born in Assisi, in Italy, eight hundred years ago. And eight centuries later I still remember a thing or two. . . . Middle class rich boy that I was, I never would have thought that it would be the poor who would be my salvation. . . . It was they who would put me back on my feet …”

Carlo Carretto was a leader of Catholic Action in Italy and served as National President of Catholic Youth from 1946 to 1952. At the age of 44 he joined the Little Brothers of Jesus of Charles de Foucauld in the Sahara. He continued writing until his death, on the feast day of St. Francis, in 1988. His many other books include Letters from the Desert.

Foreword writer Jon M. Sweeney is an award-winning author whose books on Francis of Assisi, including The Complete Francis of Assisi and Feed the Wolf, have sold more than 200,000 copies.

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