Crispin at the Edge of the World

I have never been disappointed by a book by Avi, and Crispin: At the Edge of the World is no exception. Appealing to boys and girls from middle school and higher, this book shows the reader a no-holds-barred description of the poverty, warfare, and superstition that governed life in the Middle Ages. If you are looking for a book that shows the themes of forgiveness, sacrifice, and love through the actions of strongly portrayed characters, I would highly recommend this book. Make sure that you pay attention to the stories that Bear, Crispin's adopted father, tells about a trained bear. The symbolism of those stories plays out at the latter end of the book. Troth, the third person in this unlikely trio, inadvertently teaches her friend Crispin what it means to love unconditionally. This is the second book in the Crispin triology; the first, Crispin: The Cross of Lead won the Newberry Award in 2003. Now, I'll have to pester my local librarians to get the first one on CD also! (Hyperion, 2006)