"Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices From a Medieval Village"

2007 Newbery Award Winner

"Good Masters, Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village"

Author: Schlitz, Laura Amy

Illustrator: Byrd, Robert

Publisher and date: Oxford University Press, 2007

Genre: Historical Fiction

Appropriate for grades 4-6

The setting is an English manor in the year of 1255 during medieval times. There are 22 different monologues which express the feelings, hopes, worries, challenges, and circumstances of each character. The reader is able to feel what the character expresses through these monologues. Interesting facts about this time period are also included in each of the 22 sections. The author also makes connections between different characters. For example, the characters may be friends, brothers, sisters, or the connection may be as simple as one throwing mud at the other. I believe that readers would all connect and find themselves similar to one character, because they are all very different!

This book was not like any that I had ever read before! I do not remember reading a book about the medieval times! The facts that Schlitz based her monologues on taught me a great amount of new information. I also found it easy to find myself feeling pity for certain characters and happy for others. I can name which ones are my favorites and which ones that I do not care for so much. It would be fun to have this discussion with students! I believe that my two favorite characters would have to be Jack the half-wit and Mariot, the glassblower's daughter. Jack demonstrates a true act of friendship as he befriends Otho, the Miller's son, who the other boys do not seem to like. Jack helps Otho when he found him beat-up and sobbing. Jack even cried with Otho! Jack says that he stayed by Otho's side until he stopped crying. I think that this is a great lesson that could be taught through Jack about friendship-to be willing to put others before yourselves, to be compassionate to all people, and be willing to help in any way that you can! I also liked the story of Mariot because she is a girl who has a crush on her father's apprentice,Piers, and wishes that she could be his friend, for she feels compassion on him because he is an orphan and alone. While Mariot's sister, Maud, despises him and claims that she would never marry him, Mariot would marry Piers. She is afraid to expose her feelings about Piers to her sister because she does not want to be teased. How often do we face this situation in our own lives? When we are afraid to express our feelings, ideas, or thoughts because we are afraid of being teased or made fun of? Mariot should expressed her feelings so Piers would have a friend. In the same way that I chose my two favorite characters, all readers can do the same! Each reader can connect to at least one of the characters in some way. I also found the names of the characters very fun and interesting.

I believe that this book should not be read to grades younger than fourth. Even at this age all of the concepts introduced in this book may not be understood. For example, in the monologue between Jacob Ben Salomon (the moneylender's son) and Petronella (the merchant's daughter) an unlikely friendship forms between them at the stream. Their friendship is unlikely because Jacob is a Jew and Petronella is a Christian. I did not understand why Petronella would want to throw a stone at Jacob when she saw that he was wearing a yellow badge, which identified him as a Jew. After reading the author's background pages on the reasons that Jews were persecuted in during this time and doing some research on my own, I understand. This may be a difficult for concept for younger children to understand, but can be incorporated into a history lesson in the fifth of sixth grade. Nonetheless, there are many concepts that are introduced that I believe students would enjoy leaning more about. For example, the lifestyle of people during this time can be expanded upon. Each person had their own "title" that determined much of how their life was lived and how others treated them. For example, the Lord controlled the lives of the people living in the manor, millers were seen as outcasts, knights were heroes, plowboys were hard workers, and villeins were unfortunate because they were peasants who were not free. Students could research and discuss the differences and similarities between the different types of livelihoods the books introduces. Boys and girls may enjoy learning more about Richard, the Lionheart, who Simon, the knight's son, makes mention of. This will also help students learn more about the crusades of this time period. There are some great ideas for Medieval lesson plans which include many fun learning activities that can be used with this informative and fun book! Of course, the teacher could use the monologues in a short play, which was the reason that Schlitz wrote the monologues in the first place! I believe that older students would really enjoy this activity. The teacher should be sure that the students really try to put themselves in the position of their character if they read the monologues out loud to the class or act them out.

This book is a great book to use in a upper elementary class when teaching about the medieval times! It is very informative and fun!