Pope Joan

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful book to read and recommend
Review: The book is inspiring. That a young woman could achieve so much -- could it be true? I only hope so.

Rating:
Summary: A real fun page turner
Review: This fun book is a real page turner. While you are enjoying this entertaining book, you will learn about a frightful period of time when men considered the woman's brain was in inverse size of that of her uterus, and the husband was permitted to beat his wife, as long as the weapon was not too large. Did Pope Joan exist? Maybe not this woman who sounds like a 20th century libertarian, but certainly the bones that the story is developed on must be true. Read it to decide for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: Very Engaging
Review: Although I am not normally a fan of historical novels, I really enjoyed this book. I did not evaluate the factual truth or historical accuracy of it, I just flat out enjoyed it. It is a wonderful story with just the right touch of love, suspense, yearning for knowledge, and character depth. Most enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating
Review: Great Book. Very descriptive, sometimes with a bit of unnecessary gore. If you like novelized history you will enjoy this book. Will get you into the medieval frame of mind. If you are looking for cold historical facts this is not for you. One question: At one point, Joan as a child is described eating corn for supper. Corn? Isn't corn native to the Americas? It would have reached Europe after 1492 AD.

Rating:
Summary: Heart-wrenching...
Review: Describing one of the notorious history misteries - Pope Joan, mere existance of whom has long been denied by the Church officials, the author spins a tale about the Dark Age, when mere human existance was a risk in itself. Me not being a very sensitive type, the story sometimes made my heart wrench in agony of simpathy and compassion towards Joan. True, the beliefs and concept of laws, public and moral (or rather their total absence), can shock a modern libertated woman-reader. The love story in the book is touching and lethal, the narration flows flawless, although it is clear that the story is more fictional than true. The epilogue by the author is very helpful, too.

Rating:
Summary: A VERY SPECIAL GIFT
Review: The Pope Joan book was a gift to me; not just of a book, but of a very special story; a gift of reading about an era where women were totally subservient, male-ruled and in dire need of education. From the reading of Pope Joan, one senses the urgency, desires and struggles of Joan to obtain an education and the dratistic measures she utilizes to procure that quest right down to surrendering her womanhood and garbing herself instead, in masculine identity. Her trials and tribulations in the face of adversity culminate in Joan achieving her highest goal. The pen that wrote Pope Joan has given us a gift. It has broadened our own education to an otherwise hidden part of history in the catholic church; a gift of insight and a gift of tremendous reading pleasure. Ms. Cross has achieved sucess in this wonderful historic novel. Give yourself a gift and read Pope Joan.

Rating:
Summary: Read this novel for fun, not research
Review: If you come to this book looking for an answer to the question of whether there was a Pope Joan in the Middle Ages, you will probably be disappointed. But that's not what this book is about. It's a historical novel and a pretty good one at that. Just read it and have fun imagining that it might have happened. If you read "Pope Joan" with a book club, see if you can arrange to have the author call you during your discussion. That's what our group did. What a treat to visit with this engaging woman.

Rating:
Summary: A Fascinating Story About An Unforgetable Woman
Review: Pope Joan is truly one of the best books (if not the best) that I have ever read. The meticulous research made the story both educational as well as captivating. Joan's intelligence, courage and humanness made her an unforgetable figure, a model of courage for all of us. You won't want to put it down.

Rating:
Summary: THE PLIGHT OF A WOMAN
Review: My husband purchased Pope Joan and, after insisting that I read it, I began on an adventure that transgressed to present day. The book reveals the traumatic life of a female in the early history of the church, but ironically the story could well have taken place in the present day stagnent thinking of the church in relation to women in authority. Pope Joan is a well written, "can't put down book" that holds your interest with every flip of a page. The character, Joan, is a strong young girl who forges to make a place for herself in a man's world - and succeeds. I was very proud of Joan as well as heartbroken. Her struggles and rise in the Church were what kept her going and kept her strong. She served a great purpose at a time when the church needed control and the rule of wisdom, and she cetainly had wisdom beyond her years. I recommend this book to all persons who enjoy a well written detailed account of history and that leaves you with a sense of wanting to know more about a woman you meet in a book. Flowers to the author, Donna Cross, for unfolding a story in the very best form of the written word. Thank you Ms. Cross.

Rating:
Summary: A REVELATION
Review: Whoever said "you can't judge a book by it's cover, never read Pope Joan. The intriguing cover opened the pages to historic anarchy and the stringent forbidding of the Church. Donna Cross literally undresses the church to expose it's hipocracy and continued resentment toward woman as servant's of God. This marvelous, wonderful book reveals in detail the search of a young woman to gain an education through the only means open to her -and uses the very tools of the church to achieve that goal; namely, - diguise and deception. Marvelous, just absolutely marvelous. Each page held me spellbound. From meeting Joan as a child, through to her papal accomplishments, I was in awe. Hurray for the book and hurray for the author.