Description:
A balanced and neutral account, Alpion throws new light on this remarkable and influential woman exploring her childhood, her role in Balkan politics and attitude to the Balkan conflicts of the 1980s and 1990s.
Review Quotes:
'The main thrust of this carefully argued work is two fold. Firstly it concentrates on the loss of her father when a child becoming the mainspring driving the rest of Mother Teresa's life with 'Jesus' as a parental and marital substitute. Secondly it shows with considerable clarity how Mother Teresa used and was used by politicians, governments, the church, her admirers and a few detractors to achieve her objectives in what I consider was the result of her Albanian psyche. It is a clever book, providing a great deal of original and new thought on the subject but it is not a book to skim through in a couple of hours.' - Primrose Peacock, Friends of Albania
'...this book of Alpion's feels like a whiff of delightfully fresh air. It is the work of an open and dedicated scholar, who despite his reverence for the nun has yet striven to be as unbiased as possible, never letting his emotions get in the way. I would have no hesitation at all in recommending this book to everyone.' - Journal of the Faculty of Foreign Studies
'In his unparalleled scholarly book, Alpion has presented a multidimensional portrait of Mother Teresa. And she appears human as she rarely did in any discourse about her.' - Gaston Roberge, The New Leader
'This book is the work of an open and dedicated scholar, who, despite his reverence for the nun, has striven to be as unbiased as possible, never letting his emotions get in the way. I would have no hesitation at all in recommending this book to everyone.' - Cyril Veliath, The New Leader
'In its depth, breadth, and seriousness, this volume may stand for some time to come as the single most imporant biography of Mother Teresa in English ... A great value of this book is that [Alpion] has provided us with the fullest portrait yet of her native culture and her maturation' - Center for Islamic Pluralism
'This book of Alpion's feels like a whiff of delightfully fresh air. It is the work of an open and dedicated scholar, who despite his reverence for the nun has yet striven to be as unbiased as possible, never letting his emotions get in the way. I would have no hesitation at all in recommending this book to everyone.' - Bulletin of the Faculty of Foreign Studies
'Alpion has written an absorbing analysis.' -Light Magazine
'Alpion unpacks the full historical background in meticulous detail ... the result is intriguing ... original.' - The Church Times
'Alpion gives us a thorough and well researched look in Mother Teresa's life.' - Margaret Nutting, Albanian Journal of Politics
'In its depth, breadth, and seriousness, this volume may stand for some time to come as the single most important biography of Mother Teresa in English.' - Stephen Schwartz, Illyria