Parsifals Page

“Another engaging take on Arthurian legend . . . Morris deftly blends bloody clashes of arms and mysterious enchantments with the many flavors of romance.” —Kirkus Reviews Piers is desperate to become a page to escape the dirty, tedious labor of his father’s blacksmith shop. So when a knight arrives announcing that he’s on “the quest,” Piers begs to go along. Off on a series of adventures he never dreamed possible, Piers and the knight quickly run into difficulties. The knight is slain by Parsifal who is on a quest of his own. Parsifal is unlike anyone Piers has ever met. He doesn’t behave “knightly” at all. Slowly, Piers realizes that being a knight has nothing to do with shining armor and winning jousts. And, as their journey continues, they find that to achieve their quest they must learn more than knighthood: they must learn about themselves. The tale of Parsifal has been told more than that of any other knight, but no one has ever told his story quite like Gerald Morris does in his fourth Arthurian novel, another tour de force of humor, action, magic, and, as always, true love. “Entertaining . . . Arthurian fans will be hooked by the great writing.” —School Library Journal “Libraries where Morris’s Arthurian series has a following will certainly want to add this to their fiction collections.” —Booklist

In medieval England, eleven-year-old Piers' dream comes true when he becomes page to Parsifal, a peasant whose quest for knighthood reveals important secrets about both of their families.

“Grand storytelling style . . . Readers looking for page-turning adventure, a strong heroine, and some fun will find it all here.” —School Library Journal Ever since that tragic night when her mother and guardian were murdered, thirteen-year-old Sarah has been living on her own and searching for the knight who was responsible. Her quest for revenge leads to an even greater adventure when she witnesses Queen Guinevere being kidnapped. Soon Sarah finds herself accompanying Sir Gawain and Squire Terence on a remarkable journey to rescue the Queen. In their travels they meet, among others, a mystery knight traveling incognito in a dung cart, a faery who becomes Sarah’s first friend in a long time, a reclusive monk who plans to spend the rest of his life building a tomb for Sir Lancelot, and a princess who might have a little more gumption than she appears to. As the plot thickens, Sarah finds out more about the people she’s met and befriended, as well as about herself. She begins to learn the true consequences of vengeance and what it really means to be a princess. “Morris reshapes traditional plot elements, infuses them with humor and fantasy, and creates a highly readable story . . . The novel is driven by a keen sense of justice and lightened by droll wit. A terrific cast of characters energizes the story, which plays out against a colorful, well-developed historical background.” —Booklist “Another humorous and suspenseful tale of knightly intrigue.” —Publishers Weekly

Third in the medieval fantasy series. “A perfectly delicious, not entirely serious, reimagining of part of Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur.”—Booklist Her castle under siege by an evil knight who keeps beheading all her would-be rescuers, Lady Lynet realizes the only way to get help is to get it herself. So one night she slips away and strikes out for King Arthur’s court where she hopes to find a gallant knight to vanquish the Knight of the Red Lands and free her castle. Gerald Morris’s Arthurian novel is a highly comic tale of hidden identities, mysterious knights, faeries and enchantments, damsels-in-distress, and true love. “In Morris’s third wry, sometimes hilarious, take on an Arthurian legend, a sharp-tongued young damosel gets an education in sorcery, intrigue and what true knighthood is all about . . . Fans of Gail Carson Levine’s Ella Enchanted, Patricia Wrede’s Enchanted Forest Chronicles and similarly lighthearted fantasy will be delighted.”—Kirkus Reviews “A rollicking treatment of a lesser-known episode from Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur . . . The novel is also enjoyable for its good-natured spoofing of the conventions of its medieval setting.”—School Library Journal “A rare action-fantasy that crosses age and gender lines.”—The Bulletin

Michael Havelock’s world died on a moonlit beach on the Costa Brava as he watched his partner and lover, double agent Jenna Karas, efficiently gunned down by his own agency. There’s nothing left for him but to quit the game, get out. Then, in one frantic moment on a crowded railroad platform in Rome, Havelock sees Jenna. Racing around the globe in search of his beautiful betrayer, Havelock is now marked for death by both U.S. and Russian assassins, trapped in a massive mosaic of treachery created by a top-level mole with the world in his fist: Parsifal. Praise for Robert Ludlum and The Parsifal Mosaic “[Robert] Ludlum’s narrative imagination is a force of nature.”—The New York Times “As fast-paced and absorbing as any he’s written.”—Newsday “The suspense never lets up.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution “A crackling good yarn.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity.

Two modern renaissance men pay homage to the medieval tale of Parsifal From Wolfram von Eschenbach's epic of chivalry to Richard Wagner's opera, from the knight as fool to the fool as savior, the story of Parsifal has struck deep chords with artists over the centuries. In this collaboration, Georg Baselitz's studies for a 2018 production of Parsifalat the Munich State Opera (2018) are paired with Alexander Kluge's responses to Baselitz's drawings, through stories in which he filters out individual elements from Eschenbach's epic, such as Parsifal's native wit or the figure of the Knight of the Cheerful Countenance. The result is an ongoing communication conducted over long periods of time: aspects of the Middle Ages can be found in the present. The volume concludes with Tristan Marquardt's text "Excerpts from a Parsifal Lexicon," which shows how far our contemporary language has diverged from Eschenbach's in terms of meaning and sound.

First in the medieval fantasy series set in Camelot. “This Arthurian adventure is all heart—and humor.”—Publishers Weekly Growing up an orphan in an isolated cottage in the woods, young Terence never expected much adventure. But upon the arrival of Gawain, his life takes a surprising turn. Gawain is destined to become one of the most famous knights of the Round Table. Terence becomes Gawain’s squire and leaves his secluded life for one of adventure in King Arthur’s court. In no time Terence is plunged into the exciting world of kings, wizards, knights, wars, magic spells, dwarfs, damsels in distress, and enchanters. As he adjusts to his new life, he proves to be not only an able squire but also a keen observer of the absurdities around him. His duties take him on a quest with Gawain and on a journey of his own, to solve the mystery of his parentage. Filled with rapier-sharp wit, jousting jocularity, and chuckleheaded knights, this is King Arthur’s court as never before experienced. “The author leaves some tantalizing questions, and the tale is filled with knightly derring-do.”—The Horn Book “Well-drawn characters, excellent, snappy dialogue, detailed descriptions of medieval life, and a dry wit put a new spin on this engaging tale.”—Booklist “If your readers are looking for some notable swashing and buckling with a little chivalrous slapstick thrown in, this retelling of Arthurian legend is the book for you.”—The Bulletin “There are plenty of sword fights and flashes of sorcery to delight readers, while the plot moves at a swift clip.”—Kirkus Reviews

The author of Parsifal’s Page “interweaves action with sophisticated, wry humor and deft characterization to bring to life yet another medieval tale” (VOYA). Young Dinadan has no wish to joust or quest or save damsels in distress or do any of the knightly things expected of him. He’d rather be a minstrel, playing his rebec and writing ballads. But he was born to be a knight, and knights, of course, have adventures. So after his father forces his knighthood upon him, he wanders toward King Arthur’s court, in the company of a misguided young Welsh lad named Culloch. There Dinadan meets Sir Kai and Sir Bedivere, and the three find themselves accompanying Culloch on the worst sort of quest. Along the way, Dinadan writes his own ballads, singing of honor, bravery, loyalty, and courtly love—and becomes a player in the pathetic love story of Tristram and Iseult. He meets the Moorish knight Palomides, the clever but often exasperating Lady Brangienne, and an elvin musician named Sylvanus, along with an unusual collection of recreant knights and dimwitted defenders of chivalry. He learns that while minstrels sing of spectacular heroic deeds, honor is often found in simpler, quieter ways. “The humor ranges from subtle irony to scenes of pure comedy . . . a lighthearted introduction to the period.” —School Library Journal (starred review) “Morris creates in Dinadan one of his most appealing protagonists. Written in accessible prose and laced with occasional magic, the novel moves at a quick pace and showcases a continually maturing hero.” —The Horn Book “A witty tale of adventure and reflection.” —Booklist

Promote fiction-reading across the middle school curriculum! With more than 160 booktalks and 330 book suggestions at your fingertips, this invaluable resource makes it easy to pick just the right books for your students. Designed to fit curricular studies, the book is organized by subject area:^L ^DBLUnited States History^L ^DBLWorld History^L ^DBLSocial Studies^L^DBLLanguage Arts and Literature^L ^DBLMathematics^L^DBLScience^L^DBLThe Arts^L ^DBLPhysical Education and Sports^L Extra chapters include booktalks that foster critical thinking and deal with humorous titles. Carefully chosen based on appeal, age-appropriateness, and positive reviews, each book is designated with suggested grade and reading levels. All of the booktalks are accompanied by learning extensions that can be used as assignments or as starting points for further discussion. Complete bibliographic information and short annotations are provided for each title. You'll select and prepare terrific booktalks in no time-and your students will listen with enthusiasm.