Book Review
THE SAINT AND THE DEVIL
by FRANCES WINWAR
Joan of Arc and Giles de Rais: A Biographical Study in Good and Evil

This book was one of the first full biographies I read years ago about St. Joan of Arc and it is still one of the best I have ever read because of the incredible detail that it contains about St. Joan and the times in which she lived. This book actually contains two biographies contrasted against each other which is what the title refers to with Joan of Arc as the Saint and Giles de Rais as the Devil. The author Frances Winwar must have done a tremendous amount of research not only on Joan of Arc and Giles de Rais but also on the medieval age in which they lived to have been able to provide so much detail as she tells their life stories. All this detail greatly helps the reader to really understand how miraculous it was for a simple peasant girl from a tiny town to suddenly rise to greatness leading the rough medieval soldiers of France to victory after victory against huge odds. The striking contrast between St Joan and Giles de Rais just makes St. Joan stand out that much more as the “Saint” of God that she had to have been to have been able to perform such spectacular deeds. Overall an easy read that makes a huge impact upon you as you absorb all the exquisite details about St. Joan of Arc and her times.