Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc - Paperback

by Katherine J. Chen (Author)

"This is not your grandmother's St. Joan. . . . If every generation gets the Joan it deserves, ours could do worse than an ass-kicking, avenging angel fighting simply for the right to fight."--The New York Times Book Review

WINNER OF THE AMERICAN LIBRARY IN PARIS BOOK AWARD - "It is as if Chen has crept inside a statue and breathed a soul into it, re-creating Joan of Arc as a woman for our time."--Hilary Mantel, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Booker Prize winner Wolf Hall

"A secular reimagining and feminist celebration of the life of Joan of Arc that transforms the legendary saint into a flawed yet undeniable young woman."--USA Today

1412. France is mired in a losing war against England. Its people are starving. Its king is in hiding. From this chaos emerges a teenage girl who will turn the tide of battle and lead the French to victory, becoming an unlikely hero whose name will echo across the centuries.

In Katherine J. Chen's hands, the myth and legend of Joan of Arc is transformed into a flesh-and-blood young woman: reckless, steel-willed, and brilliant. This meticulously researched novel is a sweeping narrative of her life, from a childhood steeped in both joy and violence, to her meteoric rise to fame at the head of the French army, where she navigates the perils of the battlefield and the equally treacherous politics of the royal court. Many are threatened by a woman who leads, and Joan draws wrath and suspicion from all corners, while her first taste of fame and glory leaves her vulnerable to her own powerful ambition.

With unforgettably vivid characters, transporting settings, and action-packed storytelling, Joan is a thrilling epic, a triumph of historical fiction, as well as a feminist celebration of one remarkable--and remarkably real--woman who left an indelible mark on history.

Author Biography

Katherine J. Chen is the author of Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc, which won the 2023 American Library in Paris Book Award and has been translated into nine languages, and Mary B. Her essays and reviews have appeared in The New York Times Book Review, the Times Literary Supplement, The Telegraph, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The Minnesota Star Tribune, Electric Literature, Literary Hub, and other publications, with forthcoming work elsewhere. She is a graduate of Princeton University and Boston University's MFA program in Fiction and is pursuing her doctoral degree in English at Brown University, where she is studying Henry James.