Far From Home / Matador (ePub)

This story which I must tell of war and great courage and treachery, is one of loss. Though France may celebrate her achievements for centuries to come, it is the story of how I lost my daughter, Jehanne, whom people here call Jeanne d'Arc, and the peace of my family. Joan of Arc remains one of history's most puzzling figures. How, in the fifteenth century, could a peasant girl become the head of the French army and have such success against the English occupiers? Her story ends tragically - aged 19 she is burnt at the stake after a sham trial. Far From Home is Joan of Arc's story told by her mother, Zabillet. This brilliant, vivid historical novel, published in the 600th anniversary year of Joan of Arc's birth, brings new insight into what it is like to be the mother of a hero. Zabillet knows nothing of her daughter's extraordinary future as she and her husband, Jacques, struggle to raise their children. A family of peasants, they work the land for their feudal lords and a meagre return for themselves. The English and French are engaged in a senseless war causing destruction to the land and traditional village life. But Jehanne is fiercely independent and refuses to settle down like all the other village girls. Zabillet is shocked and frightened beyond measure when Jehanne leaves home and travels to the uncrowned King of France hundreds of miles away. She struggles to believe that it could be a daughter of hers who leads the French army in amazing victories against the English. And when things go wrong, she has to stand by helplessly as Jehanne is imprisoned by the English and sentenced to death. Zabillet falls into misfortune and despair. The war drags on and for a while her family falls apart. But eventually Jehanne's vision of a united France is realised. As an old woman, Zabillet seeks justice for her daughter and restores her reputation.