The Squire's Tale (by Gerald Morris)

Orphan Terence has grown up under the care of a hermit who can see the future. When Gawain, soon to be Sir Gawain of the Round Table, stops by, the hermit sends Terence to be Gawain's squire. Gawain is a kind and noble master, Terence is a loyal and brave squire, and together they share many adventures and a deepening friendship. But Terence's parentage is mysterious, and he may have a strange connection to the faery world.

The world of King Arthur is an apparently limitless source of inspiration for writers, artists, playwrights, directors, singers, and poets. Its combination of nobility, idealism, magic, and tragedy is unmatched in world mythology and legends. But rarely has there been a version as warmhearted and satisfying as this.

Author Gerald Morris employs some brilliant techniques. He combines courtly formal language and storytelling with wicked humor and modern anachronism to great effect, using it to illuminate character, particularly that of Gawain, who can speak in flowery phrases with the best of them, but reverts to a more earthy, modern idiom when annoyed. Morris tells the story through the eyes of a young squire with a mysterious heritage, and it's immensely satisfying to watch his growth and dogged loyalty. He also brings out the humor inherent in the stories, much as T. H. White did for an older audience. But mostly it's the focus on the growing friendship between kind knight and eager squire that gives this tale more than the usual depth and soul. Arthurian tales can be rather stilted and distant, but in Morris' hands their bedrock humanity is revealed.

Author: Gerald Morris
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Children's Books
Publication date: April 1, 1998
Number of pages: 212
Hardcover price: $16.00
Paperback price: $3.99
Read Aloud: 9
Read Alone: 10