Culture and Ideas · October 8, 2026
Pope Francis' personal diary to be published
On November 24, 2026, Vatican Publishing House LEV will release the book Il Diario personale di Papa Francesco (Pope Francis' personal diary), compiled by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. This text is of exceptional value and significance for getting to know the Jesuit pope who led the Catholic Church from March 13, 2013, until his death on April 21, 2025. The book will be simultaneously released worldwide in five languages and distributed on November 24 in 94 countries. It will be published in Italian by LEV, in Spanish, English, and Portuguese by respective divisions of Penguin Random House, and in French by Editions Albin Michel.
Cardinal Fernández's diary provides insight into the inner life of the Argentine pope. Andrea Tornielli, editor-in-chief of the Dicastery for Communication, expressed, "We are very honored to publish this text by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, who presents Pope Francis' diary to the public. With this book, which we believe will be appreciated by readers worldwide, we gain an even deeper understanding of the Argentine pope's inner life."
The personal diary presents and comments on notes kept from December 20, 1992, to August 18, 2024. Lorenzo Fazzini, the publishing director, emphasized, "LEV works to spread the popes' words internationally. This year, we have been responsible for the publication and distribution of Robert F. Prevost's writings, now Pope Leo XIV, from his time as the General Prior of the Augustinians, with the book Liberi sotto la grazia, which has already been published in several languages. We are truly pleased to soon make these personal pages of Pope Francis available to readers in Italy and, through various publishers, around the world. These texts are presented in a book compiled by one of his closest collaborators, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández." The book will be presented to international publishers by LEV during the upcoming Frankfurt Book Fair from October 7 to 11, 2026.