Every book editor in the nation seems to have a personal take on Pope John Paul II's new book, "Crossing the Threshold of Hope" (Knopf; $20).

Here are several reactions:- EVEN BY PUBLISHING industry standards, it has been an unappetizing sight: Ever since buying Pope John Paul II's "Crossing the Threshold of Hope" for a reported $9 million earlier this year, Knopf has been marketing the book like oat bran soaked in holy water.

Yet tawdry as much of the hype is, the selling of the pope could be a sign that publishers finally have acknowledged the obvious: Americans might be as interested in God as they are in Marlon Brando. (Yes, the book's arrival could also be a sign that publishers were so desperate for a fresh celebrity that they had to go to Rome to find one.)

Essentially an amplified Roman Catholic catechism, "Crossing the Threshold of Hope" takes the form of responses to 35 questions put to the pope, in writing, by Italian journalist Vittorio Messori. It was translated from Italian by Jenny and Martha McPhee, daughters of journalist John McPhee.

Reading the book is a little like taking an adult confirmation class with an unusually thoughtful and erudite, if extremely conservative, parish priest. No one is likely to be surprised by his answers to such questions as "Is Jesus the Son of God?" (yes); "Does `Eternal Life' exist?" (yes); "Is there hope for the young?" (yes) and "Does God really exist?" (take a wild guess). Some responses could have been written at almost any time after the Enlightenment.

Especially in the first half of the book, his tone tends to be detached and tutorial. He explains points of Roman Catholic doctrine clearly and somberly, but without pretension or stuffiness and with a deep bias against feminists.

The pope does not just disagree with feminists on matters such as abortion, but issues a blanket condemnation of the women's movement as one "that finds its roots in the absence of true respect for woman."

- Janice Harayda

(Newhouse News Service)

- IN BOOKSTORES across the United States, a new book by Pope John Paul II has arrived on schedule, the day he was to have arrived in New York for a visit that would have generated news, excitement and, the publishing industry expected, huge sales.

The pope has written several previous books of prose and poetry, none of which has sold very well, and the content of the new book is familiar. "Someone who's been writing and speaking as much as he's done over the past 16 years is going to surprise me if I find something new there," said the Rev. Joseph Fessio, who runs the conservative, pro-Vatican Ignatius Press.

What makes this book different - and its publishers hope more compelling and marketable - is its more intimate, conversational format: papal answers to a journalist's queries. Preparing for a television interview with the pope, Italian journalist Vittorio Messori submitted a list of questions. Though the interview did not take place, the pope found the questions interesting and later wrote out answers in Polish to such questions as whether God exists and how the pope prays.

"It's the first time that a pope puts pen to paper and writes directly to the masses about some crucial points relating to Catholicism and the relationship of Catholicism to other religions," Vitale said. "He writes in such a fashion that it becomes like the closest thing to a personal audience, to a personal conversation with the pope. . . . I don't want to say it's something that you read on the beach." But Vitale added: "It's very accessible."

- Bob Keeler (Newsday)

- IF POPE JOHN PAUL II read some of the books that sit next to his on the shelves of bookstores in the United States, he might have added another chapter, just for Americans.

But when John Paul decided to write "Crossing the Threshold of Hope," he probably didn't realize that it would be prominently displayed in the United States next to the other hot sellers of the day: Jackie Collins' "Hollywood Kids," "Nicole Brown Simpson: The Private Diary of a Life Interrupted," and "Michael Jackson - Un-au-tho-rized."

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But while "Crossing" is not a tabloid tell-all book, so popular with Americans today, it does, in its own way, answer many questions that Catholics and non-Catholics have had about the papacy.

And competition or not, the book is moving quicker than a line for holy communion.

"Crossing's" release was much anticipated around the world, with one bookstore in Ireland opening at 12:01 a.m. Thursday and selling 150 copies in an hour, according to Vitale.

- Dan Wetzel (Chicago Tribune)

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