Title: Voices: The Final Hours of Joan of Arc
Author: David Elliott
Link: Goodreads / Amazon
Rating: 5/5

Description

Told through medieval poetic forms and in the voices of the people and objects in Joan of Arc’s life, (including her family and even the trees, clothes, cows, and candles of her childhood), Voices offers an unforgettable perspective on an extraordinary young woman. Along the way it explores timely issues such as gender, misogyny, and the peril of speaking truth to power. Before Joan of Arc became a saint, she was a girl inspired. It is that girl we come to know in Voices.

Review

Okay, so something to know about me is I have a weird fascination with Joan of Arc.

Literally one day I woke up and had to know everything about her.

So when I heard there was a YA book about Joan of Arc coming out I knew I had to get my hands on it. I also had some really high expectations. And I can say, without a doubt, this book was everything I wanted and more. I didn’t expect the book to be told in poems (I obviously didn’t read the synopsis), and it ended up being a delightful surprise.

What fascinated me most about this collection was the little details. Like the fact that each poem is written in a poetic style popular in Joan’s lifetime, how some poems are shaped like the object it’s POV is told from, including quotes from Joan’s trial, and how the poems aren’t just written from the point of view of Joan and company, but from the objects close to her as well. I didn’t expect half of these things when I started reading, and now I couldn’t imagine the story being told well without them!

The author did a really good job retelling Joan of Arc’s life so anyone could pick up the book without having to know anything about her beforehand. Which is why I’m totally going to make everyone I know read it when it releases in bookstores.