"God wills it!" the Crusaders cry in battle. In this richly detailed and lovingly crafted story, Michael Cadnum explores the terrible paradox of holy war through the eyes of Edmund, a young apprentice metalworker, who finds himself unexpectedly rescued from prison and pressed into service as a squire to a knight. Without a bit of experience with horses or swords, Edmund goes off in terror and delight to help rescue the True Cross from the infidels in Jerusalem, and finds his manhood in surviving the siege of the sea-fortress Acre and the terrible bloody battle of Arsuf.
This is not the sanitized version of the Middle Ages that appears in so many
young adult novels. From the first scene, in which the king's men punish
Edmund's master by whacking off his hand, Cadnum gives us the authentic
brutality of the period--its stink and bugs, random cruelty, drunkenness, and
sudden death--as well as its colorful pageantry and lofty ideals. His previous
medieval novel, In a Dark
Wood, first showed his poetic skill with the small, vivid details that
bring these times alive in all their strangeness. In The Book of the
Lion, Edmund's journey to the Holy Land is full of such moments, as well as
the heart-stopping adventure teens enjoy. The many young readers who are in love
with the Middle Ages will come away from this story with their understanding of
that time (and our own) enriched and deepened. (Ages 12 and older) --Patty
Campbell --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of
this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Edmund, a squire,
awaits the joint punishment for his master's counterfeiting charges and escapes
his fate when a knight asks him to join the Crusades. In a starred review, PW
wrote, "The message about the romance vs. reality of war proves powerful, and
fans of history and adventure alike will devour this well-crafted, dramatic
quest." Ages 12-up. (Oct.)n
Grade 6-9-Apprenticed to a minter of coins for King Richard, Edmund is awakened one night by the Exchequer's men, there to exact punishment for the minter's use of counterfeit metals. As Edmund watches, his master's hand is chopped off, and he knows that as apprentice, his hand is next. He escapes, but only because his arm is more useful wielding a sword in the battle to reclaim the Holy Land than nailed to a stake. As a knight's squire, he travels through Europe and across the Mediterranean, getting into a fair share of trouble and experiencing the vagaries of life on the move. Finally, arriving at Acre, he finds himself camped outside the castle walls. While all await the arrival of the king, the anticipation of the glorious battle to come is lost in the everyday reality of Crusader life-heat, poor food, sickness, and boredom. At this point the book seems endless, but in fact, the story just echoes the life they are leading. Cadnum paints a vivid, but not idealized, picture of the times. With the deft use of word and gesture, he delineates his characters in a way that makes them believable even though their mind-set is very different from ours today. What is most clear is that though the characters have faith in the rightness of their cause, the battle they are fighting is no different from any other ugly, brutal, and destructive war. Readers must be willing to stick with a tedious section of slowly rising action before the climax, but those interested in the subject should enjoy the story.
Barbara Scotto, Michael Driscoll School, Brookline, MA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Kirkus Reviews
Cadnum revisits the medieval setting of In a Dark Wood (1998) for this tale of a young squire's experiences in the first crusade, but once again, his storytelling lacks conviction. Having seen his master's arm struck off at the order of the Sheriff of Nottingham, strapping apprentice Edmund is saved from the same fate by Nigel and Rannulf, two knights preparing to follow King Richard to the Holy Land. It's a long, grubby journey, from London to Venice, thence to the siege of Acre, and the subsequent battle of Arsuf, replete with mud, blood, filth, disease, violence, rough humor, moments of beauty, and even fugitive kindness. Edmund views his world, and his own acts, with a detachment that robs his narrative of immediacy, particularly at climactic moments. In the end, he gets a glimpse of Jerusalem, then accompanies Nigel, whose arms have been crushed, back to England. Cadnum builds on a sturdy historical framework, and the naturalistic detail adds plenty of color, but few readers will be truly caught up in Edmund's adventure. The author's confessed bafflement over ``caring, responsible'' adults behaving with such brutality seeps into the story, making it emotionally inaccessible. (Fiction. 12-15) -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
Edmund, an apprentice, is seized by the king's men and thrown in jail for his master's crime of counterfeiting. Then Edmund is unexpectedly released into the custody of Sir Nigel, a knight in search of a squire. Edmund will train as a squire and accompany the knight on a journey to fight alongside Richard the Lionheart on the Crusades. As they travel across Europe, Edmund is fascinated by all he sees, but he fears for his safety in the days that lie ahead. How can he possibly prepare for the untold horrors of war? "This is a pulse-pounding tale, vivid and visceral." -Booklist