The Passion of Dolssa (53 page)
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Authors: Julie Berry
On Other Aspects of Medieval Community Life
R. I. Moore’s highly influential work,
The Formation of a Persecuting Society: Authority and Deviance in Western Europe, 950–1250
tells the story of how persecution became a way of life in Latin Christendom beginning in the twelfth century. Quite simply, it wasn’t always the case, and Moore convincingly pinpoints its surprising origins. A highly rewarding read. His more recent
The War on Heresy
elaborates on and
clarifies in a sweeping narrative this “persecuting society” from the eleventh to the thirteenth centuries. Leah L. Otis’s meticulous work,
Prostitution in Medieval Society
, dives deeply into a marginalized yet indispensable aspect of medieval community life. Prostitution touched community, family, marriage, sex, politics, religion, and money. Thus her work, which, fortunately for me, focused on the very corner of Europe I was most interested in, was a treasure trove of detail.
On the Language of Old Provençal and the Songs of the Troubadours
For a work that presents troubadour writings in faithful and lyrical English translations by poets including Ezra Pound, alongside the beauty of the original Occitan (or, to be precise, Old Provençal), I recommend
Lark in the Morning
, edited and translated by Robert Kehew, Ezra Pound, and W. D. Snodgrass. For anyone wishing to closely study Occitan as spoken during the Middle Ages, I recommend
An Old Provençal Primer
by Nathaniel Smith and Thomas Bergin.
On All of the Above
The audio course, “Terror of History: Mystics, Heretics, and Witches in the Western Tradition,” published by The Great Courses Company, and taught by Professor Teofilo Ruiz of UCLA, provides an engaging and far-reaching overview of the ideas presented here.
Adamson, Melitta Weiss.
Food in Medieval Times
. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood,
2004.
Ames, Christine Caldwell.
Righteous Persecution: Inquisition, Dominicans, and Christianity in the Middle Ages
. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2009.
Bennett, Ralph Francis.
The Early Dominicans: Studies in Thirteenth-Century Dominican History
. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1937.
Brunn, Emilie, and Georgette Epiney-Burgard.
Women Mystics in Medieval Europe
. New York: Paragon House, 1989.
Cheyette, Fredric L.
Ermengard of Narbonne and the World of the Troubadours
. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2001.
Flinders, Carol.
Enduring Grace: Living Portraits of Seven Women Mystics
. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993.
Furlong, Monica.
Visions & Longings: Medieval Women Mystics
. Boston: Shambhala, 1996.
Kehew, Robert, Ezra Pound, and W. D. Snodgrass.
Lark in the Morning: The Verses of the Troubadours
. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
Levy, Emil.
Petit Dictionnaire Provençal-français
,. 3rd ed. Heidelberg: C. Winter, 1961.
Moore, R. I.
The Formation of a Persecuting Society: Power and Deviance in Western Europe, 950–1250
. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 1990.
Moore, R. I.
The War on Heresy
. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap of Harvard University Press, 2012.
Otis, Leah L.
Prostitution in Medieval Society: The History of an Urban Institution in Languedoc
. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985.
Pegg, Mark Gregory.
The Corruption of Angels: The Great Inquisition of 1245–1246.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001.
Pegg, Mark Gregory.
A Most Holy War: The Albigensian Crusade and the Battle for Christendom.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Ruiz, Teofilo. “Terror of History: Mystics, Heretics, and Witches in the Western Tradition.” Chantilly, Va.: The Great Courses Company, 2002. Audio recording.
Sibly, W. A. and M. D. Sibly, eds.
The Chronicle of William of Puylaurens: The Albigensian Crusade and Its Aftermath
. Woodbridge, Suffolk, Eng.: Boydell, 2003.
Smith, Nathaniel B., and Thomas Goddard Bergin.
An Old Provençal Primer
. New York: Garland, 1984.
Wakefield, Walter L.
Heresy, Crusade, and Inquisition in Southern France, 1100–1250
. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974.
The colorful, messy, flesh-and-blood humanity of those who died on either side of the thirteenth century turmoil over heresy weighed upon me during the two years I worked on this book. This book is for them. So much needless loss must impart a sense of reverence, and, for the writer, a humbling obligation to get the story right. Yet there will be errors, and for them, I apologize.
For all the scholars, medieval and modern, who took pen to paper or parchment to record and analyze the history of the turbulent thirteenth century, and the plan to expunge heresy from the soul of Europe, thank you for your devotion to your life’s work.
This book wouldn’t exist without Teofilo Ruiz, Distinguished Professor of History at UCLA, who first pointed the way. It
couldn’t
exist without Mark Pegg, author and professor of history at Washington University in St. Louis. Mark lent his expertise, his enthusiasm, and a year of his life to this project. I’ll miss our collaboration. I can never repay his kind generosity.
Alyssa Henkin, my agent, and Ken Wright, my publisher, were unanimous in their passion for this idea. Their belief kept mine afloat. Kendra Levin’s tireless editorial efforts deserve a gold star and a lifetime supply of Wonka chocolates. I can’t thank her enough for her wisdom nor her kindness. Others at Penguin Young Readers Group showed tremendous support. I’d be lost without the brilliant Janet Pascal. To Kim Ryan, thanks the world over. To Jennifer Loja, my gratitude for your faith in me. My publicist Marisa Russell’s energy and creativity are amazing. To the marketing, publicity, and sales teams, you’re the real thing. Thanks for all you do. To Lindsey Andrews, Cara Petrus, and Jim Hoover, thank you for making this book so lovely.
The Passion of Dolssa
is immensely richer for the thoughtful contributions of early readers Nancy Werlin, Ammi-Joan Paquette, Deborah Kovacs, and Ginger Johnson. I’m deeply grateful.
Finally, to Phil, whose belief and insights I prize above all—here you remain, after all these years, a man for all seasons, a faithful heart for the ages.
Winner of the 2014 Silver Inky Award
Four years ago, Judith and her best friend disappeared from their small town of Roswell Station. Two years later, only Judith returned, permanently mutilated, reviled and ignored by her friends and family.
Unable to speak, Judith lives like a ghost in her own home, silently pouring out her thoughts to her childhood friend, Lucas. He is the boy who has owned her heart for as long as she can remember – even if he doesn’t know it.
But when Roswell Station is attacked, long-buried secrets come to light, and Judith is forced to choose – to continue living in silence, or recover her voice, even if it means changing her world, and the lives around her, forever.
Told in a voice that is achingly raw and intimate, this remarkably original novel will haunt and stay with you. It will fill you with Judith’s passion and longing, and its mysteries will keep you feverishly turning the pages until the very last one.
HarperCollins
Publishers
First published in the USA in 2016
by Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC
First published in Australia in 2016
by HarperCollins
Publishers
Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
Copyright © Julie Berry 2016
The right of Julie Berry to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the
Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000
.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the
Copyright Act 1968
, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
HarperCollins
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ISBN 978 1 4607 5203 6 (pbk)
ISBN 978 1 4607 0686 2 (ePub)
Cover design adapted by HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover image by Ricardo Demurez / Trevillion Images
Text design adapted by Kirby Jones
