The Passion of Dolssa by Julie BerryMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Who doesn't want to read about possible heretics in the 1240s? Well, I certainly didn't know that I did! Dolssa's life is thrown into chaos when the Catholic Church finds out about her Beloved and how she speaks about Him. They burn her mother at the stake and she is on the run. A young woman with two sisters, Botille, finds Dolssa and rescues her. They still are not safe, because Friar Lucien will not stop until she is brought to justice for her "heresy."
Berry chose to tell her story from many different perspectives. You hear from Botille and Dolssa most often, but you also hear from Lucien and different witnesses to Dolssa's life on the run and her actions. This gives us an all-around view of the story, which I appreciated. It also helped to humanize characters like Lucien a bit, who otherwise we would all rail on for stupidity (forgetting historical accuracy.) The book also describes a genocide I had never heard of (Albigensian), part of the Crusades of the Catholic Church. It brings the Crusades to horrifying life, where it's not just your life at stake, but your family and anyone who has ever helped you. These are themes we see repeated throughout history.
The other thing I really liked about this book were the female characters. When I think about this time period, I often think life was hard and boring for women. Botille, Sazia, and Plazensa, along with Astruga and Sapdalina and all these others, illuminated for me that yes, life was hard for peasants, but they also had fun and joy and love and their life was not that different from our own.
I also really loved the end matter. As a librarian on a book review committee, I very much appreciate glossaries, sources cited, bibliography, etc. Berry gives you an overview of the Crusades and Provensa, definitions of non-English words used, as well as where to look for continued reading. Excellent!
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