The author, Michael Daly, columnist for New York Daily News, was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his commentary on 9/11. It is not surprising that his book holds your attention to the last page.

"The Book of Mychal" is about Mychal Judge, a beloved Franciscan friar who perished in the collapse of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

Like his religious forebear, St. Francis of Assisi, Judge lived a life of simplicity and giving love to others.

Institutional ministries cramped his spirit and inhibited his desire to help anyone and everyone. Street people knew him and loved him. He frequented hospitals where men were dying of AIDS, cradling them in his arms as they died. As one of the chaplains for the New York City Fire Department, he was on the scene when buildings were engulfed in flames.

And when firefighters perished, he brought such comfort to their families that he was their "padre," regardless of their religious beliefs. This big-hearted Irishman with a shamrock tattooed on his posterior was everyone's friend, respected by world and national leaders and by the dregs of New York City. It is no wonder some are saying he should be considered for sainthood.

But the book is more than the story of Judge. It is also the story of heroes, of men who love their dangerous work, repeatedly risking their lives for total strangers and going into burning buildings to search for anyone who might be trapped

As Judge grew closer to his men, he "came to believe that those laughing men in blue work shirts were closer to God than even the very best priests and certainly any of the Church hierarchy of big fat Monsignors. He could formulate no principle more sacred than the one the firefighters always practiced but never preached: A life is a life and every life is equally worth saving even at the risk of losing your own."

This is also the story of the inspiring camaraderie of firefighters, a band of brothers walking into hell so none of their own is ever left behind.

In an age when celebrities are a dime a dozen and authentic heroes are rare, "The Book of Mychal" is a stunning witness to a man who truly lived for others.

It is also a witness to those tough, hard-drinking, profane heroes who called Mychal Judge "our priest."

Reading this story I have a new and deep respect for all who wage war against the flames of destruction and death. Read it and you too will want to salute them.

WILLIAM R. KLEIN  is pastor emeritus at Second Presbyterian Church  in Roanoke.