You would never know that Pope Francis is one of the world’s most intriguing and alluring figures by visiting BookExpo, the largest annual book trade show in America, as I’ve just done. I probably missed it, but I didn’t see a single banner or book on display with the Pope’s image in the Javits Center, a six-block-long black glass complex along 11th Avenue in Manhattan.

Thousands of authors and personalities commanded attention. Bill Clinton and James Patterson – the best-selling Patterson just as big a draw as the former President to booksellers – spoke about the thriller they worked on together, The President is Missing.