Originally published in 1910, this biography consists of 43 very short chapters and uses language suitable for young readers. This Kindle edition, equivalent in length to a physical book of approximately 60 pages, recounts the story of the 15th-century French teenager who led her country’s armies against the English in the Hundred Years War and who was later handed over to the enemy, convicted of heresy, and burned at the stake.
Sample chapter:
V. JOAN’S VISIONS
Our heroine was only about thirteen years old when she had her first vision. She did not speak of it then, but later, at her trial, she said that she was alone in the garden, working, when she saw a bright light, and heard a voice which said: “Joan, be a good child, go often to church!”
Of course, the little girl was surprised and astonished; but such advice could come only from an angel, and as Joan liked to go to church, she obeyed, and did not say anything of the light, of the voice, or of the advice it had given her. Most children find it very difficult to tell things which they do not fully understand, and Joan, who was so unlike her companions in many ways, was very much like them in this respect.
After this, she often saw the same light and heard the same voice. It was generally when she was alone in the fields, in the woods, or in the garden, for at first her apparitions did not visit her in the house.
Little by little, the small peasant girl grew accustomed to these visits, and taking courage, looked in the direction whence the light came and saw--or imagined she saw--some radiant forms, one of which was like a man, with wings, who had a crown upon his head.
Again the mysterious voice bade her be good and go to church, and related to her the sad story of her native country, which was suffering so much from the war. The heart of the little girl was very tender; she could not endure to see anyone suffer, and when she learned all the miseries to which the poor people were subjected, she longed to help them.
But Joan was very young and ignorant, and at first she doubted whether the voice she heard was that of St. Michael or not. This doubt cleared at last, and as long as she lived she firmly believed that she had seen and heard the archangel, the one who, she had been told, led the heavenly host.
About the Author:
Helene A. Guerber brings literature and history to life for young readers. She is the author of numerous books, including “The Story of the Greeks,” “Stories of Shakespeare’s Tragedies,” and “The Story of the Thirteen Colonies.”
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