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Pope Joan

A Novel

By Donna Cross, Donna Woolfolk

(13)

| Paperback | 9780345416261

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Book Description

"Engaging . . . Pope Joan has all the elements: love, sex, violence, duplicity, and long-buried secrets."
--Los Angeles Times Book Review

For a thousand years men have denied her existence--Pope Joan, the woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to rule Christianity for two years. NowContinue

"Engaging . . . Pope Joan has all the elements: love, sex, violence, duplicity, and long-buried secrets."
--Los Angeles Times Book Review

For a thousand years men have denied her existence--Pope Joan, the woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to rule Christianity for two years. Now this compelling novel animates the legend with a portrait of an unforgettable woman who struggles against  restrictions her soul cannot accept.

When her older brother dies in a Viking attack, the brilliant young Joan assumes his identity and enters a Benedictine monastery where, as  Brother John Anglicus, she distinguishes herself as a scholar and healer. Eventually drawn to Rome, she soon becomes enmeshed in a dangerous mix of powerful passion and explosive politics that threatens her life even as it elevates her to the highest throne in the Western world.

"Brings the savage ninth century vividly to life in all its alien richness. An enthralling, scholarly historical novel."
--Rebecca Fraser, Author of The Brontës

Critics

  • Pope Joan

    Pope Joan Donna Woolfolk Cross Ballantine Books Paperback 411 pages Copyright 1996 Donna Woolfolk Cross says that in the early Middle Ages, the legend of Pope Joan (John VIII) was more popular and widespread than the story of King Arthur. Hardly a su ... (read full critics)

    curledup published on Tue, 7 Sep 2010

1 Review

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  • Clearly Embellished but Entirely Fantastic

    WONDERFUL story!! The author obviously had to take liberties when filling in the gaps of this historical anomaly because there is virtually no definitive documentation in existence to validate the legend. Unfortunately, several of these embellishments took the form of literary cliches (forbidden lov ... (continue)

    WONDERFUL story!! The author obviously had to take liberties when filling in the gaps of this historical anomaly because there is virtually no definitive documentation in existence to validate the legend. Unfortunately, several of these embellishments took the form of literary cliches (forbidden love, feminist grand standing, etc) but taken as a whole, I adored this book and read it in giant gulp-fulls.

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    ReadingQueen 12/17 said on Aug 11, 2010 | Add your feedback

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ISBN Edition List Sale Seller
9780345416261 Paperback $14.95 $13.45 bn.com
$14.95 -- The Book Depository
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