ROLAND WRIGHT, BOOK 1

It’s 1409, and nine-and-a-half-year-old Roland Wright, son of the best armorer in the kingdom, dreams of becoming a brave knight. Alas, knighthood is only for sons of the nobility. The prospect seems more achievable when a royal emissary arrives one day at his father’s armory. The officer-of-arms announces that the grateful king, whose life was saved in battle because he wore Mr. Wright’s excellent suit of armor, will repay the craftsman by taking one of his sons into his court to be trained as a page, the stepping stone to eventual knighthood. The wise father sets Roland and his older brother several challenging tasks to discover who’s worthy of the honor. With inspiration and guidance from a friendly local knight and Roland’s pet mouse, the (W)right brother ultimately wins out through feats of strength—of character—as much as demonstrations of hard work and courage. The slightly preachy message about following one’s best instincts comes through in this pleasant, undemanding Australian import, first in a series, illustrated with wry humor by Rogers and filled with some interesting details about knights and the Middle Ages. (Historical fiction. 8-11)