Martin Luther: Catholic Dissident
"Peter Stanford has written a compelling biography of one of the greatest men of the modern age. He is particularly brilliant on the tensions inside Luther's private and spiritual life. This is a very fine biography, written with a flourish." Melvyn Bragg
"Readable, tolerant, intelligent...Stanford humanises the 'little monk' once seen as a man full of flaws, but whose courage in standing almost alone against clerical abuse and corruption changed the course of history" Nigel Jones: The Observer
"Peter Stanford makes the life of Luther into a thrilling narrative, told from the perspective of the modern Catholic." Antonia Fraser
"Peter Stanford's biography skilfully guides readers through the events of Luther's life and highlights the enormous courage he showed in confronting the power of the pope and the Church...This is a compelling, well-written account." Nick Rennison: Sunday Times
On the 500th anniversary of the 95 Theses, an account of Martin Luther - the man, the myth and the mass movement that his act of rebellion against the Church of Rome provoked. An intimate portrait, drawing extensively on Luther's own remarkable voice, it explores this complex, charismatic man of God and confronts those darker sides of him that have distanced him from contemporary audiences.
Published in London by Hodder & Stoughton in hardback and on Kindle in March 2017 (ISBN 9781473621664) and in paperback in October 2017 (ISBN 9781473621671)
"Stanford conveys brilliantly to an atheist like me the nature of the internal battle Luther underwent...What makes this work so valuable is the writer's belief that religion is important, and that the relationship of the believer to God requires explanation. I wonder whether an atheist like me would have been half so effective a communicator of Luther's true importance."
– David Aaronovitch: The Times