The only contemporary sources of information about Hrotsvitha (ca. 935-975) are from her own writing, explains Wailes, a scholar of medieval and Reformation literature of German-speaking Europe. These suggest that she was a canoness in the religious community at Gandersheim in Saxony during the royal and imperial reign of Otto I. He thoroughly examines her whole body of work for evidence of her thinking in spirituality and politics--that is, the inner and outer life of Christians and pagans, those who are uncertain in their faith and enthusiasts and saints. Distributed in the US by Associated University Presses. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)