Back cover synopsis:
"The visions of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, a stigmatized religious of the nineteenth century, are private revelations and add nothing new to the deposit of faith. But they do offer a powerful aid to the contemplation of the mystery of the Mother of God.
This Life of Mary includes the mystical narratives of the Virgin's ancestors, her Immaculate Conception, her birth and early years, the entrance and stay in the Temple, the wedding with St. Joseph, the Visitation to her cousin Elizabeth, the births of St. John the Baptist and Jesus, the caravan of the Three Kings and their adoration of the Child, the return to Nazareth, the flight to Egypt, the Massacre of the Innocents, the stay of the Holy Family in Egypt and the return to Nazareth, the death of St. Joseph and his stay in Ephesus with St. John, and the end of his earthly life.
All this, combined with a multitude of historical and geographical news about Essenes and Chaldeans; Rome and ancient Egypt; Job, Abraham, Moses, Elijah and Tobias; or the Ark of the Covenant. When Ana Catalina indicated where the little house of the Virgin was located in Ephesus... the archaeologists, with only her indications, found it.
Together with The Bitter Passion of Christ, which served as inspiration for Mel Gibson's film The Passion, this Hidden Life of the Virgin Mary constitutes a priceless contribution for those who want to know and love Jesus by the hand of his Mother."
Highly recommended to be read in conjunction with The Bitter Passion of Christ and The Public Life of Jesus. They complete, so to speak, the Life of Jesus as seen by Anne Catherine in her visions. However, The Public Life is a summary of what are actually 8 of a total of 15 volumes of visions. They are available on the Blessed's website: http://annecatherineemmerich.com/