Customer Reviews

Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc

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I read Twain's Joan of Arc simply because it was included in a collection with 2 of my perennial favorites: The Prince and the Pauper, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. I loved Joan of Arc also. But it is a very different cup of tea.

Nowhere else does Mark Twain rein in his irreverent spirit as in this work! He allows his sense of humor to emerge only in the stories of Joan's peripheral friends and fellow villagers (the Paladin, most notably, and even the narrator in the story of the love poem.) The sense of the author's genuine respect and admiration for his amazing heroine permeates the book.

The story of Joan of Arc, always a moving tale, takes on greater weight when a man like Mark Twain - a worldly, cultured, highly intelligent, and totally irreverent man - not only gives 12 years of grueling research to it, but then produces a book that is so unequivocally respectful and devoted.

Such a picture he draws! THIS is a character to excite anyone's admiration, and to inspire us all to give our best selves. And throughout the tale, while one recognizes that it is indeed a "story", it rings convincingly true. No matter what construction a religious or non-religious reader may put on the happenings of Joan of Arc's story, it is still a story of an enduringly noble character and amazing intellect. A woman who stood - and still stands - above the remainder of her species.

This is an inspiring and uplifting piece of work.

My twelve year old daughter and I read this book aloud as a supplement to our studies of the Middle Ages. Before we began I thought the 452 pages would be a bit daunting but by the time we finished we wished the book was longer. This was an incredible story told by a wonderful storyteller. The characters became more than just names in a history book. We now have an in-depth understanding of the time period, the politics, and the corruption of the Church. This book by Mark Twain, which took him two years to write and involved twelve years of research, is written in the voice of Joan's page and secretary, the Sieur Louis de Conte. De Conte knew Joan as a child and was the one person who was with her through everything up until the fatal end. The book is divided into three sections. The first section details Joan's life as a village peasant when her Voices came to her directing her to take up her mission to rid France of the English, and crown Charles VII the king. In the second section, Joan's military campaign is described and explored. Militarily speaking, it was a triumph. After all, she was the only person in all of history to hold the supreme command of a nation's armies at the age of seventeen. And she was a girl for goodnes sake! It was unheard of at the time and would still be remarkable today. The third section deals with Joan's trial for witchcraft where her strength of character is especially evident. To the end, she claimed her Voices came from God not from Satan as charged. She was unwavering on this point up until she was burned at the stake. Her trial was a sham designed to further the interests of the infamous French bishop, Pierre Cauchon of Beauvais. She died a martyr's death while her beloved France and her King looked on doing nothing to save her. This book was particularly impacting for my daughter as it dealt with a young girl who was remarkable for her character, her religious devotion and her strength. It was a special experience to share it together as a read aloud and I would recommend it highly to anyone looking to further their understanding of a remarkable young girl who changed the course of history.

The man universally acclaimed as the father of the American novel here abandons much of his trademark bite to show a surprisingly tender side. By the time Twain is done, you, too, will find yourself full of admiration for Joan of Arc.

Although he knew full well that patriotism is often the last refuge of the scoundrel, Twain turns that saying on its head in this book. In language befitting the fifteenth century, he salutes Joan as a remarkable Catholic teenager who embodies patriotism. Indeed, to some of her peers, Joan becomes France.

I especially enjoyed the few parallels between this book-length love letter and Twain's more famous work in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The Paladin does in this book what the "king" and the "duke" did in Huckleberry Finn. Better yet, while Joan's soul mates in real life would be other devout women who died young (like, for example, Therese of Lisieux), her soul mate in literature would have to be Mary Jane, the pretty girl who makes a brief but memorable appearance in Huckleberry Finn because her promise means more to Huck than "another man's kiss-the-bible."

Why Twain loved Joan is understandable: her honesty and intelligence command devotion. Twain's affection for inept French generals who spent most of the Hundred Years War losing to the English is more mysterious, and may shock modern readers almost as much as the fuss that corrupt priests really did make over Joan's clothes. One way or the other, this meticulously researched and lovingly told tale stays with you like a tropical sunset. In two words, Virtue Rocks.

The publication of The Oxford Mark Twain edition of Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc is significant, primarily in that it makes available to a wide audience a book that has been unjustly relegated to the rosters of religious specialty publishers, thereby denying it the widespread popularity it so richly deserves. The edition also includes two very insightful essays on the book: an Introduction by Justin Kaplan and an Afterword by Susan K. Harris. However, both of these essays make the mistake that most critics have made over the years--they ignore the fact that the book is an enormously entertaining read!

Mr. Kaplan's Introduction starts off with the bald statement that had the book "been the work of another popular writer of its day ... it would not command attention a century later." A curious way to start an introduction for a book which the publisher presumably wishes to sell. Ms. Harris, on the other hand, makes some excellent points supporting her thesis that the novel is "a document of fin-de-siécle loss and alienation," but, like Mr. Kaplan, is relentlessly dismissive of the work's quality as a whole. Both authors seem to resent the fact that Mark Twain's chronicle is not a funny book, nor does it fit easily into the pigeonhole of Twain as American literary icon. Interestingly enough, it is Mr. Kaplan who cites Susy Clemens' opinion on her father's career: "He should show himself to be the great writer that he is, not merely a funny man! Funny! That's all the people see in him--a maker of funny speeches!" A hundred years after her statement, Kaplan and Harris are quick to bear out its unfortunate truth.

Joan of Arc may not be a particularly good example of social criticism--as a matter of fact, any criticism of nineteenth century society it contains are heavily veiled by its medieval setting--but it is a scathing indictment of human treachery and deceit, elements that are prevalent in all societies and throughout all eras. And it is a wonderful story! It is Twain at his most unapologetically sentimental, and few writers, if any, were ever capable of achieving that state without descending into the maudlin. The book is not a biography, although it does draw from the actual transcripts of Joan's trial. And it certainly wouldn't pass muster by today's standard of "biography as pathology."*

However, both Kaplan and Harris are on the mark in stating that this book is atypical of Mark Twain. Despite his well-known agnosticism, he writes in an adulatory way about a woman who, 24 years after the publication of this book, was canonized by the Catholic church. Despite his financial problems of the time (leading to bankruptcy), he wrote a book that was a major departure from the style that had made him a success. Despite his virtual hatred of the French, he undertook a loving portrait of their most-cherished national hero.

Twain spent 12 years researching this book, and two more in the writing of it. It was time well spent, and the rewards for the reader are enormous. The author knew that. "I like Joan of Arc best of all my books," said Mark Twain in 1908. "It is the best; I know it perfectly well."

*A term borrowed from Jan Swafford's recent book on Charles Ives (whose connection to Mark Twain is that Ives' father-in-law was Mark Twain's neighbor in Hartford).

A master storyteller tells the tale of one of the most remarkable persons in known history. How a young, illiterate farm girl became commander-in-chief of France's armed forces at the age of 17; leading her army, which had become accustomed to defeat, to victory after victory, putting a reluctant king on his thrown and in the process, for a brief time, becoming the living embodiment of France to its people.

It is a story of Joan's courage, intelligence and most of all her unswerving faith in her destiny and in her God, and how in the last year of her brief life she stood totally alone against her persecutors, whose sole objective was to have her die by fire.

Twain's admiration for her shines through every page, and the more I learn about Joan of Arc, the more I share his admiration.

This is a great book, and a must read for anyone interested in Joan of Arc.

Mark Twain astounded me with this account of St. Jeanne d'Arc's life and death. His twelve years of research are clearly evident in the meticulous detail and quotations taken directly from the French National Archive. Told from the point of view of Louis de Conte, it is an exciting narrative of the battles that won France its freedom and the amazing girl who made it all possible. I truly believed I was reading the memoirs of a man who had known her personally! Twain's idolization of Joan is prominant in each chapter. While this does taint his descriptions of the English and Charles VII, it is this adoration that makes this book so endearing. The reader gets pulled into fifteenth century France, cheering Joan's victories and mourning her injustices. For Twain, this must have been a labor of love, and I am grateful for his devotion to her tale. The footnotes add amusing and sometimes heartbreaking side information. Those who speak French will enjoy the portions written in that language. Those who don't, fear not! Being unable to read it will not ruin the story. While this is a serious novel, Twain's famous sense of irony manages to find a place amongst the legend. I suggest that everyone, particularly avid readers of Mark Twain or of historical figures, read this book. While some may not enjoy it as much as others, it is a history that needs to be kept alive.

I just had to read an account of Joan's life after seeing the made-for-t.v. version in early 1999. I was reading the book from a Catholic perspective, looking for inspiration in the life of a person deemed a saint in the eyes of the Church. The book was a jewel...Twain wrote this with an eloquent style and portrayed Joan as a gentle, humble, obedient girl. It inpired me not only on account of Joan's holiness but also because this reads like a fairy tale...isn't it amazing that God can do such a thing as raise up an illiterate farm girl to lead an army! (And be successful militarilly!) An awesome story and an awesome read!

Reviews of this work seem to split. Some call it a quite boring book, expecting perhaps something more akin to Twain's more famous writing. Others consider it excellent storytelling and a tribute to the famous saint and symbol. The 800 pound gorilla on the couch that no one seems to mention, however, is the religious nature of the narrative. Do you or do you not accept that Joan was visited and guided by angels? If you do, then the story holds together wonderfully as a tribute to the purity of spirit of Joan. If you don't accept the angelic visions and visitations, the story comes off as an unbelievable fawning over the young woman. In other words, what you make of the book may largely depend on what you bring to it. Twain's characteristic humor and irony come through in a few careful places, showing the unmistakeable skill and intelligence of the author. While wonderfully writtena and excellent storytelling, this is a very different read than most of Twain's other work.

Really Excellent! I see a 6th grader has reviewed it. I think this book would have appeal from the youngest to the oldest. I loved the recent TV movie and wanted to read the book, but my library only had the book on tape. It's so enthralling I want my own set now, to hear again and bless others by sharing it. The book is so much better than the movie, and of course truer. What an uplifting inspirational life. It helps me understand why Catholics name Saints - what else can you do with lives such as these. If anyone likes a suspenseful, exciting court trial, there is none better than Joan's. If anyone loves heoric battle stories, there are none so exhilerating as this. If anyone thrills to see how God uses the least likely person to intervene miraculously in the life of man, they will marvel at this. (I thought Joan must have been a battle-loving tomboy - quite the opposite!). If anyone has a love of history, this truly puts you right there. If you love truth and love a heart of gold, you will thrill with this book. This was the first book on tape I tried and what a neat idea. I got laundry folded, drawers organized, and surfaces cleaned - so much more productive (and less guilty) than sitting. I'll be looking for more good books on tape.

If I ever questioned the myth about Joan of Arc, replies to me would be, "she was some young French girl who fought battles for France and was accused of being a witch, so they burned her!" As ignorant as it sounds this is true. I am so glad I found this book, by accident, I was browsing. Seeing the title I thought now Mark Twain, I'm sure he will tell me the story beautifully. The fact that he spent 12 years in research impresses me, she is a marvelous human being to provoke that kind of loyalty from a celebrated novelist and storyteller.

I was so engrossed in the book I finished it in three days, taking only breaks to go to work, ect. I had a hard time putting it down. The book is filled with emotion, action, drama; so many levels of entertainment.

I feel blessed learning about the work that God performed through his faithful Joan of Arc; there are very little historical stories like this after the Bible that I am aware of. I have traveled through her childhood, her military genius, and her endurance of persecution that I can only relate to what Jesus endured encountering the religious Pharisees and Pontius Pilate-amazing simularities in their responses to questioning, both being accused of Satanic activity. If anyone makes a comment regarding Joan of Arc, I am now beyond informed and able to tell of her life and death completely, as if I were by her side. Thanks Mark Twain, I understand why you devoted so much time in your research of this remarkable young woman of God