The story of the unlikely election of the first American pope is recounted in Christopher Lamb's new book, "American Hope," "What Pope Leo XIV Means for the Church and the World". The book will be published on March 26 by Headline in the UK and Hachette in the US. In 2025, 2025, one week after the funeral of Pope Francis, President Donald Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself dressed in the white cassock and miter of a pope on his Truth Social platform and was re-shared by the White House’s official X account. The reaction from Catholics worldwide varied from disquiet to outrage, but the image sparked media interest in the papal election proceedings. Despite this, the cardinals, who had begun gathering in Rome ahead of the conclave, were reportedly reluctant to elect an American pope due to their power and cultural significance. Lamb's book suggests that this shift in the role of the US in the world was seen as a significant shift from Europe and the West to Africa and Asia.