Even while historians credit ­Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II with hastening the end of the Cold War, they have failed to recognize the depth or significance of the relationship that developed between the two leaders.

Acclaimed scholar and bestselling author Paul Kengor changes that. In this fascinating reserve, he reveals one bond-which included a religious connection between your Catholic pope and the Protestant president-that drove the two guys to confront what they understood to be the great evil of the twentieth century: Soviet communism.

Reagan and John Paul II almost didn’t get the chance to forge this relationship: just 6 weeks apart in the spring of 1981, they took bullets from would-be assassins. But their strikingly comparable near-death experiences brought them close together-to Moscow’s dismay.

A Pope and a Leader is the product of many years of research. Predicated on Kengor’s tireless archival digging and his exclusive access to Reagan insiders, this publication reveals captivating brand-new details on a romantic relationship that changed history.