Joan of Arc by Josephine Poole and illustrated by Angela Barrett

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

Three paw prints. You might be wondering who Joan of Arc was? She was a teenager who lived a quiet life in the country as a farmer's daughter. One day she was visited by a stranger who told her she was to become a soldier, form an army, and save the prince from his enemies. Joan lived in France in the 1400s and her country had been at war for many years. Joan did as she was told, and she saved the prince. But Joan didn't stop there. She also protected poor villagers and the towns they lived in from invading armies. Officials in France began to wonder who Joan (a young teenager) was and who was helping her. Joan said she was given direct orders to help others, including the prince, as a direction from God. This made French officials nervous. Why would God talk to "a girl" instead of them? And if Joan wasn't talking to God (since God would NEVER talk to a girl) who was she talking to? Officials felt there was only one logical answer. Joan was talking to the devil and people who talk to the devil needed to be arrested and put on trial. I had mixed feelings about this book. I liked the story and the pictures but I had concerns over the words. I couldn't decide if this book was supposed to be a picture book that had too many words or a detailed non-fiction book that could have used more pictures to help break up the given information. If you would like to learn more about Joan of Arc ,a website to start your investigation would be: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_arc.