Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz
by Sam Arnold-Boyd on Sep.02, 2008, under Free Verse, Horror, Newbery, Sam's Reviews, Writer's Corner
Who would like this book? Teachers and students who are studying medieval times, writers interested in working with poetry and/or multiple voices, and potential directors looking for a production for a class.
Why? Laura Schlitz was motivated to write this book so that students could each have an important role in a production about medieval life. She wrote 22 monologues, each from the point of view of a young person in a medieval town. As the monologues proceed, the reader gets a fuller and fuller view of the life of the town because the individual narrators know each other and refer to each other. The result is a very satisfying dramatic experience that also gives the reader a rich view of the historical context of the lives of the narrators. She adds historical notes at strategic places throughout the monologues and manages to share lots of information in a welcoming, conversational style. The illustrations, by Robert Byrd, complement the text with watercolors that reflect a medieval style. It’s not surprising that this book won the prestigious Newberry Award for 2008. If you’re studying medieval times, don’t miss it!
The details: 85 p. 2007
