Sandro Contenta: 6 books

No one expected the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, to be elected pontiff last March. But in the months since, Pope Francis has become one of the most talked-about people in the world. As Toronto Star journalist and longtime Vatican watcher Sandro Contenta writes in his new...

As the cardinals converge on the Vatican City to select a new pope, they face a church in steep decline in the Western world. Empty pews are indicative of a community that has lost faith with its church, a church that has been consistently conservative and has failed to address either the modern issues...

Nothing conjures up images of folksy Canadiana as vividly as maple syrup pancake breakfasts, horse-drawn rides through sugar bushes, buckets hanging from maple trees. But little about the industry is quaint in 21st-century Quebec. In Amber Gold: Maple Syrup Wars and a Huge Canadian Heist, Star feature...

It's difficult to overstate Superman's impact. First created in 1934 by Toronto-born Joe Shuster and Cleveland native Jerry Siegel, the original superhero burst into the public consciousness 75 years ago. He continues to awe and inspire with this year's Man of Steel. In Superman: Everyone Wants a Piece...

Sharks are the ocean's apex predators. And attacks on humans are increasing as we populate coastlines and encroach on their domain. Still, as Toronto Star feature writer Sandro Contenta points out in his new Star Dispatches ebook, Shark School: Learning to Love the Ocean's Top Predator, the creature...

In early September a woman known only as 'Linda' walked into a Toronto homeless shelter. She was well-dressed, without identification and completely lost to herself. Within weeks, police launched a continent-wide search to find out who she was. Toronto Star reporter Sandro Contenta stumbled onto Linda's...