People of God series Dorothy Day Love in Action

Dorothy Day's accomplishments were as vast as a continent; to grasp them requires a guide. Let it be Patrick Jordan, who dwelt with Day and their fellow Catholic Workers in the mystery of poverty. No one is better than Jordan at explaining the moral principles that woke Day up in the morning and led her to do battle with the world. He takes the reader into the adventure of Day's spiritual life, her jailings in the cause of peace, and the crossroads moment when she decided that, from then on, she would give of her soul and substance to the 'wretched of the earth.' And how she calls us to do the same.

This is a well-told story of an inspiring and controversial life. . . . It is worth reading this book to discover Dorothy Day's depths of spiritual searching and her recognition that if we hope to change the world, we have to being with ourselves. Read Patrick Jordan's account and decide which aspect of this incredible life speaks to you.

I love this book. It makes me feel as if I really knew Dorothy Day in her lifetime, as Patrick Jordan did. With his perceptive observations and deep knowledge of her writings, he captures Day in all her inspiring, saintly contradictions. He tells a story that is at once witty and precise, moving and concise. It will appeal not only to those who know of Day and want to reflect further, but to those yet to discover her and the great meaning her life holds for us today.

This book can be recommended to a wide readership. Reader-friendly and inspiring, it would be a good choice for high-school students. It reads quickly enough so that everyone in the parish book club would find time to finish it.... In short, it's a wonderful book and a fine addition to this Liturgical Press series of concise and inspiring biographies for the general reader.

An impressive, compelling, and exceptional life story that is part of the outstanding People of God series.

It is a noteworthy attempt to reveal a portion of the soul and mind of Dorothy as Jordan perceived it. It is a difficult space for a biographer to occupy, but he does it with such sensitivity and clarity that the reader leaves this book with a feeling of knowing Dorothy Day a bit better.

In Patrick Jordan's portrait, an inspiringly authentic Dorothy Day springs to life. The energetic-but-searching young journalist finds her adult vocation as a joyful prophet. In the author's view, Dorothy's faith is both a gift and hard-won, the result, for example, of living with the poor, nonviolent resistance and protest against injustice. Jordan's privileged position as a close friend, neighbor and co-worker of Dorothy for twelve years becomes a boon to every reader of this clear and uncommonly mature reflection.

For persons who may have heard only vaguely of Day and her work, this book is an excellent introduction to a woman whose whole life was `love in action.'

Jordan writes as one who knew her well, and so the book is able to convey a vivid sense of Day as a person. . . . Instead of offering a chronological narrative, he weaves together his living sense of Day's personality with some of the major themes of her work. The result is illuminating, even for those who already know a lot about Day.

Patrick Jordan's evocation of Dorothy Day is so fresh and vivid that you feel he was in conversation with her just last week, not several decades ago. This book puts the reader in her company, too.

Patrick Jordan's book Dorothy Day: Love in Action is a clear, concise and keenly observed biography of the feisty, saintly and sometimes contradictory social activist Pope Francis praised during his historic speech to Congress. . . . There is no plaster mold for this saint.