| Booktalk
#1
Imagine: You are only
fifteen years old and you have been promised to marry a man much older
than you that you have never before seen. Nervous yet? On top of
this promise, which you are told will not take place for a year, you are
informed that you will be guarded day and night by a guardian until you
are properly and safely married. What would you do?
This was the predicament that Æthelflæd, a ninth century English-Saxon
princess finds herself in. She has always known the safety of her
country and the freedom to come and go without permission, but everything
has changed. Her country’s kingdom is threatened and her father King
Alfred the Great has promised her hand to his ally Ethelred of Mercia as
a way to insure the strength of both kingdoms. For the enemies to
gain access to Æthelflæd would mean the downfall of the kingdom.
Yet she does not see it as the kings and her guardian does. She feels
like her life is being intruded upon.
Æthelflæd is not your regular princess. She has been
trained to read and write, actions that were very rare in the ninth century.
She is also very devious and plans several attempts to free herself, at
least temporarily from her guardian. However, this trickery stops
after the first kidnapping attempt on her life leaves one of the kidnappers
dead at the hands of her guardian. Only then does she realize the
seriousness of her situation.
Due to travel a great distance through dangerous territory, Æthelflæd’s
guardian takes it upon himself to train her in the ways of the sword.
Little does she know how handy her book learning and training in the art
of defense will help her as she finds herself in unknown country with only
a few men to defend her. What will happen as Æthelflæd
travels to Mercia for her wedding? Who will save her when everyone
around her is dead? Will a sixteen-year old princess be brave enough
to survive or will she die at the hands of her captor? Read The Edge
of the Sword by Rebecca Tingle to learn the fate of Æthelflæd
the Saxon princess. (Sandra M. Brundage, jimufl@bellsouth.net,
USC MLIS Student)
Booktalk #2
In the late 800’s in old England,
there lived a girl name Ethelfled who grew up to be the greatest heroine
in ancient English military history. What kinds of experiences would have
shaped a girl into a sword-wielding warrior? The Edge on the Sword tells
us an action-packed story of a girl who learns to ride a horse without
being seen, who plans military strategy and who learns the art of swordsmanship
from her tutor, Red.
The warrior queen, Ethelfled,
was a leader to her people. The Edge on the Sword is an imagined and exciting
story of what she may have been like as a fifteen-year old. (Melissa
Bowman, Melissa.Bowman@pisd.edu, Armstrong Middle School, Lone Star
Book Award nominee, 2003-2004) |
