The Lady and the Squire

I just finished reading this book to my 7-year-old son and we both loved it. I'm a fan of Terry Jones from his Monty Python days, and was delighted to find his irreverent, offbeat humor intact throughout this fast-paced adventure. Having said that, I must caution parents on the appropriateness of some of this material for the pre-10 age group. If you read it to your child, be prepared to occasionally edit for language and subject matter. Also, as the action occurs in locales throughout France, you may wish to brush up on your French pronunciations!

Okay, first of all, this book is superb. It has wonderful descriptions, the characters are unique, and it has an eventful plot. Could it get any better? You bet. It is funny, and a good book to get kids interested in reading. I would reccomend it those who love medieval stories, adventure stories, humourous stories, fantasy,... Pretty much anyone! Probably best for ages 7 - 14.I read this book before I read the prequel, and it wasn't so confusing. I've been looking for the first one, The Knight and the Squire, but so far I haven't found it in any bookstores. (sigh!) Now here's what it's about:Setting: medieval FranceCharacters: Tom - an adventurous young squireAnn - a mischievious young girl who masquerades as a knight for most of the bookand Emily - a young Lady who Tom runs into and immediately falls in love with during his adventuresPlot: Tom is kidnapped, thrown in a dungeon with a cannibal, condemned to death, he escapes, runs into Emily (who decides to come with him), and as he is escaping he discovers that the whole English army is drunk. Oh, and later he falls into a well, jumps off a palace wall to avoid being captured by the Pope's guards, and Emily, who thinks Ann is a knight, falls in love with 'him' until she learns the truth (that Ann is a girl).Now the plot isn't the only thing that will make you laugh until you cry - for here are some examples of chapter titles:"The Town Where Everyone is Drunk" and "How Tom Nearly Invented the Flushing Lavatory Five Hundred Years Before Thomas Crapper" and "What Happened Under the Pope's Floorboards"Okay, so if you don't think that's funny, you probably shouldn't read it.But, anyway, it's a funny, suspenseful, exciting book. I congratulate Terry Jones and say to anyone thinking about buying it "If you don't read it, you're really missing something!"