Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!

Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village

by Laura Amy Schlitz

Illustrated by Robert Byrd

AWARDS:

2008 Newberry Award Winner

ALA Notable Children's Books

NCTE Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts

Chicago Public Library Best Books for Children and Teens

SYNOPSIS:

This book consists of a series of monologues from the youthful inhabitants of an English Medieval Village. Each character serves to illustrate different roles and life perspectives of the people who live in the village--all of whom range in class and profession. Gender roles and belief systems of the time are also explored. The author includes helpful footnotes and discussions on important medieval words and/or concepts. For example, she gives some background and significance on the Medieval pilgrimage, on The Crusades, and on the three-field agricultural system that was most common at that time. The book is beautifully illustrated in an illuminated manuscript style and is complete with helpful maps. This book succeeds in bringing the town, the time, and the people to life for readers.

EVALUATION:

This book is genius. It is not only beautiful to look at but it is also fun to read. Although it can be read individually, it was written to provide students with dramatic materials to role play and/or perform and, therefore, bring the town to life for an audience. All of the characters in the book are adolescents and express not only feelings appropriate for their Medival time period but also feelings that are developlemtally appropriate for adolescents in general.

CLASSROOM APPLICATIONS:

I think this book would be interesting to use with Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. It would provide some background for Chaucer's writing and would be a great tool for engaging students. The book also includes a good bibliography that might encourage students to do some research on Medieval life on their own.

AGE RANGE:

6th-12th

PERSONAL REACTIONS:

At first I thought this book would be primarily for a younger audience; however, I enjoyed reading it so much that I think it is applicable for a wide range of ages. I learned a lot about Medieval life that I had often wondered about but knew very little. I think students of all ages could have fun with this book.