Pope Joan

Rating:
Summary: Excellent portrayal of historical time, place, character
Review: Pope Joan is an excellent book-- a real page turner. Character of Joan truly comes alive. I choose to believe the historical person did exist, and I hope she was even a little bit like the person Donna W. Cross portrayed in her novel. The time period of the Dark Ages-- the lifestyle, mores, and culture are illuminated. An excellent contribution to the genre of historical fiction. I am glad to know it will be made into a movie-- one I will definitely rush out to see!

Rating:
Summary: Enthralling!
Review: There are few historical heroines as fascinating andcontroversial as Pope Joan, a woman whose hunger for knowledge andindependent nature led her to pass as a man and ultimately to become Pope of the Catholic Church. This spellbinding novel tells the extraordinary story of the one and only woman ever to sit on the throne of St. Peter. Brilliant and talented, young Joan rebels against the medieval idea that women should not be educated and teaches herself to read and write despite her father's violent opposition. When her older brother is killed in a Viking attack, Joan takes up his cloak and identity, goes to the monastery of Fulda, and becomes Brother John Anglicus. In the monastery, Joan discovers that the very qualities which earned her contempt as a woman--intelligence, initiative, determination, courage--are admired and appreciated when she is believed to be a man. She distinguishes herself as a great Christian scholar and is eventually drawn to Rome, where she becomes involved in the turbulent events of the day--the murder of the Emperor's representative in the papal palace, the Saracen sack of St. Peter's, the fire in the Borgo that destroyed over three-quarters of the Vatican. With wit and skill, she triumphs over appalling odds and finally attains the highest throne in Christendom. One of my favorite scenes was one where Joan argues with a theologian who asserts that the size of a woman's brain and of her uterus are inversely proportionate--that is, the more a woman learns, the less likely she will ever bear children! The reasoning Joan uses to destroy this man's argument is truly delicious! I first found out about the book when I stumbled across its website. There's lots of information there, including excerpts from the book (but be warned--they'll get you hooked!),an interview with the author, and reviews. According to the website, the book is being made into a movie. Pope Joan is a real page-turner. I literally couldn't put it down--stayed up one night until 4 am to finish it! It's a marvelous work of historical fiction, and women everywhere should read it. END

Rating:
Summary: Pope Joan is a myth
Review: Based on reader's comments, and the interview of the author, the tale upon which this novel is based is being accepted as true. It is NOT. Pope Joan did not exist.

The first version of the Pope Joan myth we have in writing dates to the 13th century, in a work by a Dominican friar, Stephen of Bourbon, entitled 'The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit'. In this version, the mythical female pope was not named, and she was said to be elected in about 1100 AD. Friars and popes did not always get along well, so it appears that Stephen's intention was anti-papal propaganda. The tale also appears in manuscripts of Boccacio and Petrarch, and within interpolations of Martin of Troppau's 'The Chronicle of the Popes and Emperors'.

The story grew, mutated and acquired detail by accretion over the centuries, and the name of the supposed female pope was variously given as Joan, Agnes or Gilberta. Nevertheless, the story acquired considerable authority, to the point that it was accepted as true by the Council of Constance in 1415. The Calvinist scholar David Blondel finally debunked the myth in 1647. Just like the 'Donation of Constantine', the Pope Joan story is simply a lie.

The basis of the fable could be two women of the house of Theophylact, Theodora and her daughter Marozia, whose influence in 10th century Rome was so great, they could seat whomever they pleased on the papal throne. Their exploits are described in lurid detail by Luitprand of Cremona, who hated them and was probably just passing on scandalous gossip.

If you want to read 'historical fiction', pick up the book by Graves, "I, Claudius". Here is an outstanding example of an author filling in the details of historical fact (as related by Tacitus) in an entertaining and enlightening way. "I, Claudius" has the distinct virtue of being based on FACT.

Rating:
Summary: special offer from author to book reading groups
Review: In conjunction with the launching of the Ballantine Reader's Circle Series, I have made a special offer on my website (www.popejoan.com): I will chat online or by telephone with any reading group that selects Pope Joan for the month.

I have had several such conference sessions already, and they have proved to be very lively and mutually informative. Readers have enjoyed learning about the process of writing and researching Pope Joan, how scenes and characters have evolved (and were different in earlier versions!). And I have enjoyed learning what parts of the book they liked best and least!

Interested groups can leave a message on the guestbook of my website.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Great idea, but a little clumsy in the execution. Cross fills out the sketchy details of Joan's life nicely, making her an interesting and sympathetic character. However, there were a few too many melodramatic made-for-TV moments -- a character dying suddenly just as he's about to betray Joan, a Viking attack disrupting a wedding just at the crucial moment. Also, most of the supporting characters were one-dimensional and predictable; the "bad guys" (and there were quite a few) had no redeeming qualities whatsoever, which made them much less interesting. I did appreciate the author's afterword discussing the historical evidence supporting the existence of Joan; it's nice when historical fiction states just how historically based it really is. However, I was disappointed overall; the subject of the book really piqued my interest, but the writing was a bit too awkward to make it a truly good read.

Rating:
Summary: Terrific read--kept me up at night.
Review: I have rarely run across a book which was so readable and yet so informative. I am fascinated by the history of religion and had heard rumors of a female pope. This book satisfied my curiosity but has also whetted my appetite for more about religious leaders.

Rating:
Summary: Great reading! Couldn't put it down....
Review: This book was impossible for me to set down. The vivid descriptions of characters and settings made me take the phone of the hook and stay up all night to read it! Whether or not you are a fan of historical fiction, you will feel the many emotions of Joan as she matures into an incredible young woman. The historical notes at the end of the book piqued my interest in the subject and helped me appreciate Donna Cross's yarn, which she spun around this accepted-as-true European legend.

Rating:
Summary: POPE JOAN included in Ballantine's new Reader's Circle
Review: Book clubs are flourishing across America, so Ballantine is now offering trade paperback editions of seven novels, complete with a reader's guide. Each contains an eight-page discussion guide -- bound into the book itself. And each guide offers a rich harvest of supplementary material, including provocative questions, in-depth interviews with the author, background information, and much more to enhance your private reading and discussion-group experience. For more information regarding the Ballantine Reader's Circle, contact http://www.randomhouse.com/BB/readerscircle/.

Rating:
Summary: Over-rated!
Review: Sorry to be a nay-sayer, but this novel just didn't live up to my expectations. I found it had a lot of contrived plot devices, with Joan repeatedly being saved by some trick of fate just in the nick of time. Also, the motivations of her character aren't really clear. She seems to have this dogged love of learning, but it really isn't examined with any sensitivity. Joan came across as uni-dimensional. For those of us who really appreciate nuanced historical fiction, this ain't it. Fans of Dorothy Dunnett beware

Rating:
Summary: A Story of love and faith
Review: Donna Cross' first novel is an exciting read from cover to cover and she built the excitement within the historical background of the little documented ninth century of Western Christianity. I could not forget Joan as young girl through the turbulence of her world. The author keeps the reader's interest intact as she follows Joan's pursuit of an intellectual life. I was fascinated by her journey of faith and a terrific love story within a fast-paced and very well written historical novel. Can't wait to see the movie, too. Thanks, Ms. Cross for sharing this story Fred Ermlich ([e-mail])