Voices

Well, the physical book itself is magnificent; it's gorgeously designed and laid out, and the cover artwork is stunning.

The content itself, however, just didn't quite grab me. It felt a little labored and at times awkward, and never quite landed for me. There wasn't enough of an emotional impact or narrative detail to capture my attention. The poems written from the points of view of various inanimate objects or abstract entities were an interesting idea and I was looking forward to that quirkiness, but I felt they didn't really add too much insight into the story. I definitely enjoyed the book most when it was told from Joan's point of view.

After reading in the author's note at the end that all of the poems were written in forms that were contemporary to Joan did make me reevaluate my view of the book once I'd finished, and I do think it's quite a commendable technical achievement, but I felt it was almost a little too much form over function.

Perhaps if this information had been included in the “Before you read” section and I knew it up front I'd have enjoyed it more, having gone in with a more receptive mindset and technical curiosity. However, I was looking for a more emotional examination of Joan of Arc and those around her, and that's definitely more to do with my expectations than a fault of the book, so I certainly recommend giving this a go if that concept appeals to you.

I was OBSESSED with Joan of Arc when I was a little witch going to Catholic school. But while I appreciate the effort put into the prose, it fell a little flat for me. It was as if I was reading a series of facts, rather than poetry.