When in Rome: A Journal of Life in Vatican City by Robert J. Hutchinson Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of When in Rome: A Journal of Life in Vatican City
Book Review: Recommended reading for anyone traveling to Rome.
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is a must for anyone (especially Catholics) traveling to Rome. The author gives you an inside view of the wall of secrecy that surrounds the Vatican. His delightful narrative will make you laugh out loud. If you want to know where the cardinals dine, or any other juicy tidbits, this book will tell you.Book Review: Served Its Purpose
Summary: 5 Stars
Hutchinson served his purpose. He provided just enough detail about the stories he picked to keep the lay reader interested, and varied his stories widely enough to provide a wide angle portrait of the Vatican. A humorous and thoughtful look at the place and the institution which has, for better or worse, been the very center of Catholicism and the Catholic conciousness for 2,000 years.Book Review: This book is as essential as a street map when in Rome.
Summary: 5 Stars
Mr. Hutchinson's book was reviewed in the travel section of the San Francisco Chronicle just before our trip. It is a delight. Written with wit and excellent journalistic inquiry, it opened for me the inner doors to this wonderful city and let me peek behind the scenes. While the author presents a somewhat irrevent picture he never compromises the faith...only the faithful! Even if you are not going to Rome, you will find this insightful little book great reading.Book Review: Vatican Eye-Opener
Summary: 4 Stars
In her New York Times Book Review, Sandra Mardenfeld tells us that When in Rome is "...an interesting but rarely startling account." She either didn't read it or is on the Curia payroll.Book Review: When in Rome....be sloppy
Summary: 1 Stars
One wonders why a writer would go to the immense trouble of moving himself and his family to another country in order to write a book about an ancient institution headquartered in that country and not bother first to learn the language spoken there. Mr. Hutchinson's complaints that Italians have not bothered to learn to speak HIS language in order to make HIS work easier are reapeated thoughout the book and by the end, become quite tiresome. Even the Pope, polyglot that he is, does not escape criticism because once he spoke in four languages and English was not one of them. And the Italian woman who could not understand the word "bank" is to be blamed, too. Why did the author not learn to say "banco?" But I find that his assertion that Italians, in general, do not speak English hard to believe. The contrary is true, for I often complain that when in Rome I am hardly given the chance to speak Italian, since there are so many English speakers there. Facts go unchecked in this book. Just to name two: Mary Tudor, half sister of English Queen Elizabeth I died in her bed, of cancer. It was Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, who was executed by orders of her cousin Queen Elizabeth I. The author confuses the two. And the "Chair of Peter" which the author declares to be inside the bronze throne by Bernini, was removed from there 25 years ago when it was discovered to have been the work of a Medieval artist. Then there are the outrageous, unsupported statements such as the startling one on page 40 where the author declares that the Pope "plainly would have rather be in bed watching reruns of "The Beverly Hillbillies" on TV"...rather than be "forced to listen to a boring oratorio for two hours." The author is writing about The Messiah, by Handel, which the Pope is widely know to enjoy greatly, almost as much as he enjoys being with people. Where did the author get information such as this? He calls the Order of Malta sinister.Why? But the Order of the Holy Sepulcher is less sinister. No explanation. By the way, the Order of the Holy Sepulcher was created in 1849 and not in the 11th century. The old order also named of " the Holy Sepulcher" entered into decline and disappeared 500 years ago. Then the author gets things turned around: During "ad limina" visits it is the visiting bishop who is likely to receive from the Pope an envelope stuffed with cash and not as Mr. Hutchinson writes. The reason is of the 2,453 dioceses in the world, more than half suffer from chronic deficits or barely break even. The Pope, who is known to keep himself very well informed about every diocese in the world (witness the nine fax machines turned on day and night in his office)presents the visiting prelate, if there is a need, with an envelope containing cash. This money comes from the fund supplemented each year, on June 29th, the day of Sts. Peter and Paul, by donations from Catholics around the world. It used to be called Peter's Pence. In order to make a point, that the Vatican bank looks weird and outerworldly, like something out of the television program "Start Trek," the author fails to mention that ALL banks in Rome have those tube-like glass doors. Frequently, Mr. Hutchinson makes assertions in one chapter that he contradicts in another. He writes that the Vatican is a vast bureaucracy. He even quotes someone who agrees with that. Then he informs the reader that the Vatican civil service consists of less than 2,000 people, including janitors, museum guards, repairmen, vigilanza and 114 Swiss Guards, and that the people who actually run the Church number less than 20. Which is it? The author, who calls himself a practicing Catholic and who tells us he was educated by the Jesuits, writes that he never heard of St. Sebastian! And he goes to the Vatican to write a book! Mr. Hutchinson, St. Sebastian...the arrows...Get it?