Howard Pyle

Otto of the Silver Hand (1888) was okay; a nice story of a boy in the middle ages caught in bad circumstances. Enjoyed it. Men of Iron, however, was wonderful. You can just imagine ten year old boys in the 1930s sitting in trees reading this book. Normally, I hate dialect, but you just have to love the middle age-speak "Verily, forsooth." Great stuff; great scope for the imagination. Myles isn't a goody-goody-- he gets in fights, he doesn't want the older boys to push him around (Warning: Lengthy discussion of 'fagging', but at least the idea of service in British schools is all explained.), but he grows up to be knighted by the king himself and attempts to avenge the wrong done to his father. Will he succeed? Of course, but it is tense while he is trying. The language is a little tough, but I was able to entice a student to check it out, and we'll see how he likes it.