[.ca] America's Bishop: The Life and Times of Fulton J. Sheen (ISBN 1893554619)

From Amazon.com:
It is hard to believe that this is the first and only full biography of Fulton J. Sheen, perhaps the most important American priest of the 20th century. Sheen was an enormously popular figure in his day, hosting radio and television programs that introduced and explained his faith to millions of listeners and viewers. (He even won an Emmy Award, and the actor Martin Sheen took his stage name from the man.) Thomas C. Reeves, author of the JFK biography A Question of Character, offers an absorbing account of Sheen's life and times. He uncovers fascinating details, including a phony academic degree and the particulars of a bitter dogfight with Francis Cardinal Spellman. Although this is not a hagiographic account, it is an admiring one: Sheen comes across as an astoundingly smart, charismatic, and generous man. No wonder he was such a successful evangelizer: he converted thousands, including Henry Ford II and Claire Booth Luce. He gained some notoriety for his strong anticommunism; reading America's Bishop, in fact, provides a concise history of Catholic anticommunism in the United States. It is an outstanding book that will appeal to fans of George Weigel's Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II and anybody else attracted to this fascinating figure. --John Miller

Wonderful book about a very great man.:
This is a book that has been ignored by the media which does not want to hear about good Catholic clergy. The media only wants to know about scandal in the church - because the Catholic Church and that which it really stands for(as contrasted with the deeds of the fallible priests,and lay Catholics that can be found within it) is the mortal enemy to secular humanism, sexual license, abortion and the "if it FEELS right, do it" philosopy that is held so dear by much of the media. The book is a great inspiration because Bishop Sheen, with all his human failings, is an inspiration to us all.

Good Bio that could have been a Great Bio:
This book is a good complement to Archbishop Sheen's classic autobiography, "Treasure in Clay". I basically liked the book as it gives you insights into the man himself. However, the "gotcha" approach to Thomas Reeves' style of covering a subject sometimes can seem petty. As the book covers the enormous good that Bishop Sheen did, as in giving most of his money away to various charities and needy people, Reeves then points to small failings in Sheen's conduct. Oh boy, he was vain about his appearance, as if his perfectly combed hair pointed to some personality disorder. Come on, cut the man some slack. Other alleged faults were truly minor league. I also found Reeves' style of writing in certain parts cumbersome and circuitous. On the whole this book does a good job of portraying a truly holy man devoted to his God and his Church. Bishop Sheen is long gone but thanks to his books, TV, and radio recordings, he will long be influential to those seeking spiritual guidance. God love him!

A great biography of a mixed-up man:
Yes, Fulton Sheen had problems. None of them, mercifully, overshadowed his greatness, although they all had the potential to. His fake degree alone could have brought him down, embarrassing a leader of the Church and horrifying his followers. Reeves is very smart in focusing on these problems, and thus, understanding that hey! Sheen was a man too. He wasn't infallible, he was a man like us. But it's hard to avoid writing glowing stories about a man who helped so many people (he wasn't one for possessions-or keeping track of his cash). The story of his death is one that should inspire people looking for a modern role model. Reeves, who is Catholic, manages also to keep the book respectful about his problems, instead of attacking the Church. Why is this good? The actions of one man are not generally representative of an entire institution. It would be a logical fallacy for Reeves to do such a thing. In short, Reeves has written a fine book on an eccentric, loved figure.

A Shine on Sheen:
Thomas Reeves deserves kudos and credit for a very fine biography of a man much admired by millions. The high points of this book are as follows: the meticulous gathering of much information simply unknown by his admirers; the careful balancing of sanctity and human frailty of Sheen's character; the fascinating recreation of the Golden Age of Catholicism in America; the personal relationship between Cardinal Spellman and Bishop Sheen; a superb ability to synthesize and bring new insight from the wide variety of materials cited; a great bibliography and excellent notes. The weaknesses are minor: a tendency to repeat some stories, and the maddening tendency of Sheen himself to destroy and misplace correspondence or simply not document his personal life. Despite these minor drawbacks in the book, I was deeply moved by much of this biography and, indeed, brought to tears by the account of the last years of Sheen's life, his meeting with Pope John Paul II, and his funeral. Few will be disappointed in this book; it is a true accomplishment. Many thanks to Professor Reeves for this profound and necessary commentary on the life of a truly great person of the 20th century.

A Great Book:
Unlike some of the other reviewers, I found this book to be not only an excellent read, but I thought that Reeves truly makes a case for the canonization of Fulton Sheen. While not ignoring Sheen's vanity or love of the good life, Reeves points out that Sheen often emptied his pockets to help someone in need and that he worked tirelessly for the conversion of sinners. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and grew to respect Bishop Sheen even more.