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The book: Exquisite edition of The Little Flowers of St. Francis (Italian: Fioretti di San Francesco) -- a florilegium (excerpts of his body of work), divided into 53 short chapters, on the life of Saint Francis of Assisi that was composed at the end of the 14th century. The anonymous Italian text, almost certainly by a Tuscan author, is a version of the Latin Actus beati Francisci et sociorum eius, of which the earliest extant manuscript is one of 1390 AD. Luke Wadding ascribes the text to Father Ugolino da Santa Maria, whose name occurs three times in the Actus. Most scholars are now agreed that the author was Ugolino Brunforte (c. 1262 – c. 1348). It is a classic collection of popular legends about the life of St. Francis of Assisi and his early companions. The collection is one of the most delightful literary works of the Middle Ages!

Francis of Assisi: Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, OFM, better known as Francis of Assisi (Italian: Francesco d'Assisi; c. 1181 – 3 October 1226), was an Italian mystic and Catholic friar who founded the Franciscans. He was inspired to lead a life of poverty as an itinerant preacher. One of the most revered figures in Christianity, he was canonized by Pope Gregory IX on 16 July 1228. He is usually depicted in a robe with a rope as a belt.
In 1219, he went to Egypt in an attempt to convert sultan al-Kamil and put an end to the conflict of the Fifth Crusade. In 1223, he arranged for the first live nativity scene as part of the annual Christmas celebration in Greccio. According to Christian tradition, in 1224, he received the stigmata during the apparition of a Seraphic angel in religious ecstasy.
He founded the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women's Order of St. Clare, the Third Order of St. Francis, and the Custody of the Holy Land. Once his community was authorized by the Pope, he withdrew increasingly from external affairs.
Francis is associated with patronage of animals and the environment. It became customary for churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on his feast day of 4 October. He is known for his devotion to the Eucharist. Along with Catherine of Siena, he was designated patron saint of Italy.