Obedience to superiors was part of the Rule of her order, and this often meant unquestioning obedience, both in conduct and belief. It is this which allows the book to give an insight into the boundaries of human behaviour, and into how some people prefer to play safe, and follow the letter of the rules, while others have the wisdom to see the spirit behind them.
In these days when we are continually offered a multitude of autobiographies, often banal and full of their own self-importance, it is pleasant to come across an autobiographical story which reveals as much about an institution, and the people therein, as it does about Karen Armstrong.