Born into an intensely religious family, entering Carmel at the age of 15, dying at the age of 24, Thérèse of Lisieux is one of the most remarkable figures of modern spirituality. Patricia O’Connor has not set out to write a biography but rather to paint a portrait of Thérèse for today. Against this background of life in the Martin household and Carmel Thérèse’s discovery of detachment and the Little Way spring to life. Too often she is portrayed as a figure of pious reverence, haloed and carrying roses; with imaginative perception and psychological insight the author draws a much more credible picture. Thérèse emerges as a fully human figure and as one whose deep spirituality, through her own words, has much to say to us today.