Pier Giorgio Frassati
by Cristina Siccardi, Ignatius Press, £15
In this biography of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925), the author brings new insights into events in his life, quoting revealingly from the first biography in 1928 by a Salesian, Don Antonio Cojazzi, as well as from the memoirs of Luciana Frassati, Pier Giorgio’s sister.
Why should this rich young man, the son of Senator Alfredo Frassati, owner and editor of the influential Turin newspaper La Stampa, whose life was cut short by polio at the age of 24 – before he had achieved anything – be considered a hero today? Leaving aside his love for his faith and concern for Turin’s growing numbers of wretched industrial workers – the hallmarks of any saint – I think the answer lies in Frassati’s response to the sufferings he endured in his home life, where his sanctity developed almost unknown to his parents.
