“Trembinski’s new monograph, rooted in Francis’s lived experience and admirable in all particulars for its thorough scholarly acumen, offers a crucial refinement of our historical understanding of Francis’s life, and of the origins and development of his order.”
Leigh Ann Craig, Virginia Commonwealth University, Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture
“It is not hyperbole to suggest that this book will have an immediate and long-lasting effect both on scholarship on the Franciscans and on medieval disability studies. It is a welcome addition to both.”
Will Rogers, University of Louisiana, The Medieval Review
"Trembinski’s excellent study touches on so many issues of Francis’ life, especially the later stages: Francis’ surrender of leadership; the questions of obedience and authority; and his struggle with blindness, leprosy, and bodily pain. It is an excellent survey of Franciscan sources regarding Francis’ illness and how they have been interpreted in history."
Steven J. McMichael, Theology Department, University of St. Thomas
"Trembinski is the leading authority on the health and disabilities of Francis of Assisi. In this monograph, she shows us a world of admiring followers, medieval prisons, veneration of bones, prayer, and ascetism. She also shines a light on the medieval diet, care for the impaired, and medicine. We think of Francis as the saint who walked from town to town, preaching to anyone who would listen, even the birds. Trembinski shows us another side to Francis: a man who lived with pain, who suffered from weakness and frailty, who sought medicines for internal ailments and eye complaints, and who died relatively young."
Wendy Turner, Department of History, Anthropology and Philosophy, Augusta University
"In this important study, Trembinski presents a reinterpretation of St. Francis of Assisi that reframes the saint's oft-ignored illnesses and impairments as essential to his (in)ability to access traditional masculine power, both spiritual and secular. By offering an innovative reading of the saint through the lens of disability theory, Illness and Authority reveals how the disabled body of St. Francis has exceeded and challenged the narrative constraints of not only medieval hagiographers but also the modern historian."
Tory V. Pearman, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Writing, Miami University Hamilton
