Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc (Dover Thrift Editions) [Paperback]

Mark Twain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2002 | Series: Dover Thrift Editions

Regarded by many as the most luminous example of Twain's work, this historical novel chronicles the French heroine's life, as purportedly told by her longtime friend — Sieur Louis de Conté. A panorama of stirring scenes recount Joan's childhood in Domremy, the story of her voices, the fight for Orleans, the splendid march to Rheims, and much more.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (November 7, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486424596
• ISBN-13: 978-0486424590
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.8 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #66,426 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars "She was Patriotism embodied, concreted, made flesh, and palpable to the touch." June 15, 2006

By Mary Whipple HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

A paean to the bravery and spirit of Joan of Arc, this novel by Mark Twain is also his most scholarly, having taken twelve years to write. Clearly fascinated by Joan's "voices" and her sense of mission, Twain delves into her religious passion and her belief that God has chosen her to free France from England and restore the Dauphin to the throne. Often focusing on the arguments and trials in which Joan participates throughout her life, Twain shows her childhood attempt to "save the fairies," her struggle to become general of France, and ultimately, her defense against heresy and sorcery. Through these, Twain attempts to reconcile her spiritual commitment with the tumultuous temporal world in which she is engaged.

Born in Domremy in 1412, seventy-five years after the beginning of the Hundred Years War, Joan, an Armagnac, supports the isolated Dauphin, son of Charles VI; another faction supports the Duke of Burgundy, allied with the British. When Joan is fifteen, her angelic voices tell her she will lead God's armies, win back France, and restore the Dauphin. By the time she is seventeen she is General-in-Chief of France. After lifting the siege of Orleans, achieving many victories, and finally, standing beside the Dauphin at his coronation, she is, however, captured by the Burgundians. Sold to the English, she is later surrendered to an Inquisition in Rouen for trial as a heretic and sorceress. The Dauphin fails to intervene, and at age nineteen she is burned at the stake.

Twain creates a fast-paced story about this tumultuous period, creating a series of repeating characters who anchor Joan's story from the time of childhood until her death.... One of these characters is Sieur Louis de Conte, a childhood friend, supporter during battle, and mourner at her execution, who narrates Joan's story many years later. Rare comic scenes provide occasional changes of mood, and the last section of the novel--Joan's trial and execution--is dramatic and moving. With the focus on Joan and the arguments she promotes to advance her cause and facilitate her actions, Twain explores the phenomenon of religious passion and the lengths to which a "chosen" person will go to fulfill divine will.

As interesting as this book is, historically and thematically, it lacks the unity of some of Twain's other novels. Joan of Arc is so heroic in stature that one feels little emotional connection to her, and Twain's dialogue is so wooden that the other characters fail to come alive, except as mouthpieces for background or philosophy. On several occasions, Twain explains the historical background (how the war began, and later the Five Great Deeds of Joan of Arc) though these delay the action. A serious attempt by Twain to depict a character with whom he was obviously fascinated, this novel is full of biographical and historical detail, but Joan remains an enigma. n Mary Whipple Read more ›

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Is that you, Mark Twain? May 8, 2006

By G. Ian

Format:Paperback

I came upon this book by accident. I had heard of "Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Pierre DeConte." I looked it up in Amazon Com and found to my surprise that it was written by Mark Twain! Now, I've talked to a lot of folks, and this book is not altogether unknown, but most folks have never heard of it, let alone read it. This is way different from Tom and Huck, and the multitude of clever quips we've all heard from Mark Twain. Evidently he considered it his best work, a work of love, even though he knew that it would never hit it big time on the market.

I found the book fascinating, moving, and best of all, true. I not only enjoyed it immensely, but I read it over the period of several readings to a bunch of 5-7 graders, who also really enjoyed it (these are kids who are usually "too big" for being read to).

It is plain that Twain took great pains to make sure that the book was as historically accurate as possible, accepting the fact that he wrote it in first person through the person of Sire Louis DeConte. The only question I would like cleared up for me is how much license he took with that one character, and what is actually known about him from history.

I don't recommend many books, but I would highly recommend this one. Following my tendency I bought the budget edition, but if I had spent a bit more, I could have a book that I could lend out to friends more. I have lent this one to various teen-agers, but it is showing the wear and tear.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An Outstanding Fictional Presentation Makes This a Great Introduction to The Life of Joan June 9, 2006

By F. Orion Pozo

Format:Paperback

Mark Twain wasn't the only pseudonym used my Samuel Clemens. When this book was first serialized in Harper's Magazine in 1895, it was presented as "Freely Translated out of the Ancient French into Modern English from the Original Unpublished Manuscript in the National Archives of France" - a found manuscript with no connection to the famous author. The book presents itself as a memoir by a fictional companion of Joan's written for his family in the final years of life. The narrator claims to be a childhood friend of hers who, being one of the few people of her village that can write, accompanies her and becomes her secretary during her military career. After her capture and imprisonment, he sneaks into Rouen, where she is to be tried, and becomes an assistant to the official recorder of the the events. Thus, the author has established a single voice that can tell the complete history of the brief, miraculous life of the Maid of Orleans.

The events of the book have been simply summed up in a paragraph in WIKIPEDIA's entry on the Hundred Years War as follows:

By 1428, the English were ready to pursue the war again, laying siege to Orleans'Their

force was insufficient to fully invest the city, but larger French forces remained passive.

In 1429, Joan of Arc convinced the Dauphin to send her to the siege, saying she had received

visions from God telling her to drive out the English. She raised the morale of the local

troops and they attacked the English redoubts, forcing the English to lift the siege.

Inspired by Joan the French took several English strongpoints on the Loire.... Shortly

afterwards a French army some 8000 strong broke through English archers at Patay with heavy

cavalry, defeating a 3000 strong army commanded by Falstaff and John Talbot, 1st Earl of

Shrewsbury. The first major French land victory of the wars, this opened the way for the

Dauphin to march to Reims for his coronation as Charles VII. After Joan was captured by the

Burgundians in 1430 and later sold to the English and executed, the French advance stalled

in negotiations.

Clemens presents, through this memoir form, a story of a small group of Joan's friends from her village of Domremy who are caught up in her vision and quest and follow her into battle. They see how this poor, unschooled girl has the wisdom to convince the learned men of the Catholic Church and the French government of her mission, how she was able to raise an army and bring it success in battle despite the reservations of her generals, and how she was able to inspire the people of France to believe in their collective selves, the country of France, in spite of their foreign occupation and poor leadership. Through this approach, we the readers get a wonderful insight into the miraculous influence that Joan had on France at the time.

One might expect the irreverent Mark Twain, who wrote many scandalous pieces to be somewhat satirical in presenting this biography, but that is not the case. While his writing in this book is critical of church and state, his approach to the personal character of Joan puts her above reproach. He could find nothing in her life that was suspect, and he studied the records for 12 years. While he seems unsure about the nature of her voices, he shows Joan as firmly believing that they were real and of divine origin.

This is a mature Clemens who is married with a daughter Joan's age, and he seems happy to have found a human hero who didn't have ulterior motives when closely examined. He liked this best of all his work, yet the critics didn't share his feelings. The original Harper edition ran to almost 600 pages and was issued in two volumes. The story moves slowly with lots of asides about the infighting and rivalries of those around Joan. This may bother some readers since these are obviously fictional characters and not part of the historic record. Also, Clemens was not a scholar of the 15th century and his characters sometimes act more like 19th century Americans than French peasants. Yet these are minor flaws in a story that is an incredible introduction to the life and accomplishments of a truly remarkable person. I, personally, was disappointed that he didn't get closer to his subject Joan of Arc. He gives us the viewpoint of someone who was there and saw everything, but he never gets you inside the mind of Joan. Maybe that is the best we can hope for when reading about such an extraordinary person. Read more ›

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Mark Twain brings Saint Joan to life! July 17, 2007

By Ben D. Kennedy

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The master storyteller, Mark Twain, used his immense talent to create this fictionalized account of Saint Joan's life. Even though it is fiction, it is still very historically accurate and stays true to the story of Saint Joan of Arc. Because it is fiction, Twain is able to bring out Saint Joan's personality in a way that reminds us that she was a beautiful, vibrant, passionate young woman who sacrificed everything to serve God and save her country

I think the very fact that Twain would even choose to write a biography about Saint Joan is a further testament to her greatness. Twain was personal friends with U.S. Grant and could much more easily have written a biography about him. He also lived at a time when some of the greatest military leaders ever lived like Lee, Jackson, etc., so if all he had been looking for was a famous military leader he could have also chosen one of them. Obviously, he was looking for someone even greater to write about. I think his own words probably explain why he chose Saint Joan when he said that: "She was perhaps the only entirely unselfish person whose name has a place in profane history."

Whether you are a Saint Joan devotee or not I think you will enjoy reading this book. It is well written and easy to read and covers one of the greatest stories in world history. If you already know about the life of Saint Joan, I also think you will end up loving this account because of the way Twain brings her to life. Definitely one of the best of all the biographies written about Saint Joan of Arc and considered by Twain himself to be his greatest work. Five stars are probably not enough.