An engrossing religious and historical account that would make a valuable companion to a high school history unit on Joan of...
Debut YA that fictionalizes the life of Joan of Arc.
Ng begins this tale in the early 1400s with the childhood of Joan of Arc. The story is told in the second person, with the narrator addressing St. Margaret of Antioch, who has returned from heaven years after her death to provide Joan with messages from St. Catherine and the archangel Michael. These biblical figures instruct Joan to leave her childhood home in Domremy and assist King Charles VII in rescuing the French from British dominion. When Joan finally travels to Chinon to see Charles, Margaret is her near-constant (but always invisible) companion. During Joan’s journey, Ng provides many interesting details about life in France during the 15th century, as well as the battle between the French and the English (now known as the Hundred Years’ War) that had been ongoing since 1337. When Joan reaches Chinon, she is laughed at for insisting that she join the fight. As a young girl in an extremely male-dominated era, Joan must exhibit tremendous perseverance, patience and wit before she can convince the king even to see her. After passing every test that Charles’ men throw at her, she is eventually embraced by the French monarchy. Joan soon leads the charge against the English, miraculously achieving multiple victories in battle. Ng takes great pains to show Joan’s humanity and compassion for the casualties of war on both sides. As the fighting continues, Ng portrays Joan’s capture by the British as well as her difficult trial in their courts. Throughout this harrowing period for Joan, St. Margaret offers her solace. Despite the unusual narration, Ng manages to draw readers to Joan’s side during her tribulations, and he creates sympathetic characters in both Joan and Margaret. Readers might hope that divine intervention will lead to a different outcome than in the true historical account.
An engrossing religious and historical account that would make a valuable companion to a high school history unit on Joan of Arc.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-1497435933
Page Count: 233
Publisher: Three Daughters Press
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A joyful celebration.
Families in a variety of configurations play, dance, and celebrate together.
The rhymed verse, based on a song from the Noodle Loaf children’s podcast, declares that “Families belong / Together like a puzzle / Different-sized people / One big snuggle.” The accompanying image shows an interracial couple of caregivers (one with brown skin and one pale) cuddling with a pajama-clad toddler with light brown skin and surrounded by two cats and a dog. Subsequent pages show a wide array of families with members of many different racial presentations engaging in bike and bus rides, indoor dance parties, and more. In some, readers see only one caregiver: a father or a grandparent, perhaps. One same-sex couple with two children in tow are expecting another child. Smart’s illustrations are playful and expressive, curating the most joyful moments of family life. The verse, punctuated by the word together, frequently set in oversized font, is gently inclusive at its best but may trip up readers with its irregular rhythms. The song that inspired the book can be found on the Noodle Loaf website.
A joyful celebration. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22276-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Rise x Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2020
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
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