Here I Am, Lord

 Based on the French versions of G. Vauthiers "Le Psautier des jeunes chretien" (which in turn was inspired by Pope Pius XII's Psalter), the Boland's illustrations make this book a lovely piece of art.  The Psalms are accompanied by soft round-faced pictures in medieval style.  I don't think I have any other Boland books, but I love their artwork so I will definitely be on the lookout for more!

Here I Am, Lord

G. Vauthier

illustrations by Josette and Suzanne Boland 1960

Brother Hugo and the Bear

 This one just came in the mail and I love it already!  According to the author this was amazingly based on a true incident (which makes me love it all the more!).  

Brother Hugo and the Bear

Katy Bebe

illustrated by S. D. Schindler

The book of Saint Augustine letters has been unfortunately eaten by a bear.  As penance, Brother Hugo must borrow a copy from the neighboring monastery and re-write it.  The Prior lends him the book with the gentle admonishment, "Just remember that books are food for the souls of men, not for the stomachs of bears."

Other monks come to help him and we learn a bit about the creation of illuminated manuscripts.  But Brother Hugo knows that "once a bear has a taste for letters, his love of books grows much the more."  Everything is enjoyable- the historical details, the humor, and the engaging illustrations.  This would have been a favorite when my kids were little.

A Christmas Panorama

Here's a pretty version of  "The Friendly Beasts" and "The Twelve Days of Christmas" illustrated like a medieval manuscript.

 A Christmas Panorama 

The Friendly Beasts and A Partridge in a Pear Tree

illustrated by Virginia Parsons 1966

Across A Dark And Wild Sea

Across a Dark and Wild Sea (Single Titles)

Don Brown 2002

The true story of Columcille, a pagan born in Ireland who converted to Christianity and founded monastaries throughout Ireland and Scotland.  He worked as a scribe, creating a copy of the psalms that caused a fight among the clans.  But he promoted learning and "through his efforts the embers of literature and scholarship, nearly extinguished during the Dark Ages were re-ignited." 

 

A revered figure in Celtic history, Columcille left a legacy of learning that illuminated a corner of the Dark Ages.   

The process of writing using the tools and materials of that time period is described. Also in the back is more biographical information. A nice compliment to this book is the movie The Secret of Kells. The artwork is incredible. The kids and I loved it (there were a few scary parts for Charlotte). We ended up looking up photographs of the real Book of Kells (which I didn't know anything about before.)  

Books were made and dispatched, like small boats on a a dark and wild sea, to places where reading and writing had been forgotten or ignored.  The books made colonies of learning and people's minds, once dark with ignorance, were brightened.

The Book of Trades and To the King's Taste

These two books are not necessarily children's books, but they're still fun and compliment the medieval themes of the latest books I've been listing.

The Book of Trades (Standebuch)

Jost Amman 1973

I love this book- originally published in 1568 it lists all the trades and crafts of 16th century Germany. Written in German (with accompanying woodcuts) it has English translations at the bottom of the pages and also has an interesting introduction that would make for a good history lesson.

To the King's Taste: Richard II's Book of Feasts and Recipes Adapted for Modern Cooking

Lorna J. Sass 1975

This is a great idea in theory- a cookbook of dishes from the reign of Richard II. Unfortunately not many of them sounded appetizing to me. The design of the book has great period illustrations and is a fascinating look at the cookery of that time. 

Marguerite Makes a Book

Marguerite Makes a Book

Bruce Robertson 1999

illustrated by Katheryn Hewitt

Medieval Paris comes to life as Marguerite helps her father finish an illustrated prayer book commissioned by a noblewoman. First Marguerite travels all over the city picking up the supplies needed- gold leaf and calfskin, eggs for mixing paint and "dried saffron flowers, madder root, a cake of vermilion, some wax, pine pitch and some lapis lazuli stone" to make the colors. 

Each step is described as Marguerite puts her artistic talents to work.  The back pages hold a glossary of terms and a note about the Parisian manuscripts in the Getty Museum's collection that inspired the story.

Castle

Another great Eyewitness book all about castles. It covers castles around the world, food, castle life, prisons, sieges, the lord, and the castle builders. The kids love these books, there's always something interesting to learn.

Castle (DK Eyewitness Books)

Christopher Gravett 1994

A Medieval Feast

I'm still on a medieval kick with these books!  This one is similar to Merry Ever After in that it shows the traditions and preparations for a feast and the artwork and design is done in a medieval style. 

A Medieval Feast

Aliki 1986

 In this story the King and Queen are planning a stop at Camdenton Manor and the lord of the manor must prepare for their visit. The food takes center stage with such dishes as peacock, "cooked and then reassembled with its feathers", meat pies, boar's head, a marzipan sculpture called a Subtletey, and a pastry model of the castle filled with meat, eggs, fruit and nuts.

After the story, Aliki explains how "when the king announced he would visit, the lord was shaken. The expense of the preparations could cost him his fortune; it had happened to others. But he had no choice.

Medieval feasting was an art. Cooks not only prepared delicious food- they used their wild imaginations as well. They molded pastry into castles, sculptured desserts into kings and queens and elaborate scenes, all decorated with food paints. Live jugglers jumped out of puddings. Birds were baked in pies. But sometimes live blackbirds were hidden into the pie, to fly out at astonished guests. Each new dish was announced by trumpets and drums, and in between there was music and song.