Queen of the Reformation

Just finished reading "Queen of the Reformation" by Charles Ludwig. It's a fictionalized biography of Katie von Bora, the wife of Martin Luther. The story starts with her wicked stepmother who ships Katie off to a convent at age 16 because she mentioned her dead mother once. While there, she questions God, the Catholic rituals, and her purpose in life. She escapes with 11 other nuns after reading some of Luther's tracts. Once in a safe territory, the nuns live in the Black Cloister, Luther's residence, while studying under him to learn more about Protestantism and the New Testament. Several years later, Luther and Katie are married and the story progresses to tell of his involvement in the Reformation and how Katie supported him through running his home (which contiuously had up to 120 boarders - few of which paid their stay!).

This book will never make the great halls of literature, but it was a quick and entertaining read. The beginning third felt more like a list of historical facts with a weak story woven around them, but the last half was written more smoothly. It was a good refresher on the political situation of the 1400-1500's, with many details of the relationship between the Holy Roman Empire, Charles V, and the Protestant cities/princes. This would be a great book for a middle schooler to read to get a better picture of this time period and how Luther fit into the scheme of history.

-Sara