Adrian dreams of the day he will be apprenticed to the
bowyer,
who is his father. At thirteen, he's small for his age
and
considered too weak. Many in the village think him
useless
because of his size and constant wheezing. Many in the
village
also call him a devil for too white skin and white hair.
When the Scottish threaten to invade Northern England,
Adrian
sees this as his chance to help his father and gain a
heroic
reputation in the village. His father still denies Adrian
the
apprenticeship. With little other choice, Adrian sneaks
off,
following the path of his one and only friend in the
village to
join the army and fight for England.
THE BADGER KNIGHT by Kathryn Erskine takes Adrian on a
dangerous
journey through the warring countryside of Northern
England.
Adrian's allergies and his albinism have marked him an
outcast
since birth, and when his father refuses to teach him how
to
become a bowyer, Adrian feels weak and useless. It isn't
until he
leaves the safety of his village that he begins to
understand the
truth of the world. While he was an outcast inside his
village,
he was protected. In the outside world, his differences
make him
noticeable and memorable. Adrian's character growth comes
from
his struggles to survive on his own without the aid of
his father
or friends. He begins to see himself differently. He can
see his
flaws and his strengths which had been hidden from him in
a
village.
Adrian's idealistic view of war and heroism drive him to
do what
he believes is right and noble. This is a wonderfully
complex
issues. What is a hero? How does a person become a hero?
While
THE BADGER KNIGHT is set in Northern England of 1346,
these
questions linger today and will spark the reader's
imagination
and give him or her room to think about what heroism
means to him
or her.
Kathryn Erskine also introduces us to Adrian's
Grandmother, a
traditional healer, and Bess, Adrian's cousin, who fill
the roles
of intelligent, female characters in a male-dominated
world. It's
through these two characters that Adrian begins to
understand the
injustices of the world and how he might change at least
a few of
them.
THE BADGER KNIGHT by Kathryn Erskine is fast-paced,
historical
adventure filled with memorable characters. The
historical
details are seamlessly integrated into the story,
providing a
richly vivid and interesting setting. Children ages 8-12
will
love to follow Adrian from his tiny village into war.
Adrian is small for his age, even for an almost thirteen
year old. It doesn't help that he has albinism, which
makes
those he meets wonder if he's an angel or a devil. His
father is a bowyer, and all Adrian wants to do is become
apprenticed and go off to war as an archer. But that's
not
what his father wants for him. Since Adrian can write,
his
father wants him to be a scribe. That's just about the
last
thing Adrian wants. When the Scots invade England and
Adrian's best friend Hugh runs off to find his father and
fight in battles, Adrian soon follows, intent on finding
Hugh and joining him in glorious warfare against the
pagans
invading England from the north. When Adrian finds Hugh,
who
is caring for a wounded Scotsman, he's horrified that
Hugh
would aid an enemy. But soon, as Adrian gets to know
Donald,
he begins to question what he's been taught about the
enemy
and the nature of war. In this epic journey an afflicted
boy
finds an inner strength he never knew belonged to him.
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