Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 20, 1994 TAG: 9410210012
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Knight-Ridder/Tribune
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
``He'll be up there with Tom Clancy and the others. The pope's book is considered a big book, absolutely,'' said Kathleen Richardson, a buyer for Borders Inc. ``Every Borders store will have at least 100 copies to put out.''
Under agreement with U.S. publisher Alfred A. Knopf, ``Crossing the Threshold of Hope'' will go on sale at noon eastern time.
The 229-page book, with gold-rimmed white cover, is expected to be an instant best-seller in part because a reigning pope has never written a commercially published book before.
With 1 billion Roman Catholic members, John Paul leads the world's largest organized religious group. If only one out of every 50 Catholics picks up a copy, the entire first edition will be sold.
If all the copies printed around the world are sold, the pope could net close to $60 million. All profits will go to charity, the Vatican said.
``Crossing the Threshold of Hope'' is a simple summary of John Paul's teachings. The title refers to his belief that Christian conversion will make people feel more hopeful.
The pope touches on everything from Buddha to women, Jews to abortion and Marxism to eternity. He writes about the power of prayer, the anguish of making unpopular decisions and humanity's yearning for spiritual meaning as it approaches a new century.
For this book, the pope toned down the somewhat dry, academic style in which he often writes, but it's slow reading at best. It contains no new teachings.
by CNB