Medieval Literature for the Grammar Stage

This year we studied medieval history and literature. We read SO MANY books. Here are our favorites!

1. Favorite Medieval Tales, Mary Pope Osborne (various – long)
2. Across a Dark and Wild Sea, Don Brown (Ireland)
3. Patrick, Tomie dePaola (Ireland)
4. Little Oh, Jim LaMarche (Japan)
5. The Warlord’s Puzzle, Virginia Walton Pilegard (China)
6. Book of Norse Myths, D’Aulaire (Scandinavia and Germany – long)
7. Three Golden Oranges, Alma Flor Ada (Spain)
8. Marguerite Makes a Book, Bruce Robertson (France)
9. Puss in Boots, Malcolm Arthur (France)
10. Little Red Riding Hood, Harriet Ziefert (France)
11. The Fly on the Ceiling, Julie Glass (France – about Descartes)
12. Robin Hood and the Golden Arrow, Robert San Souci (England)
13. Robin Hood, Annie Ingle (England – short chapter)
14. Knights of the Round Table, Gwen Gross (England – short chapter)
15. The Kitchen Knight, Margaret Hodges (England)
16. Sir Cumference and the First Round Table, Cindy Neuschwander (England – math story)
17. St. George and the Dragon, Margaret Hodges (England)
18. Chanticleer and the Fox, Barbara Cooney (England)
19. Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare for Children, E. Nesbit (England – long)
20. The King’s Chessboard, David Birch (India)
21. Savitri, Aaron Shepard (India)
22. Moon Rope, Lois Ehlert (America)
23. Stories from Dante Told to the Children, Mary MacGregor (Italy – long)

In particular, I recommend the first and last titles on this list. Mary Pope Osborne (of Magic Tree House fame) does a fantastic job retelling Beowulf, Robin Hood, Sir Gawain, and more for the elementary-age child, and she has a beautiful way with language. Stories from Dante Told to the Children provides background, author information, and a summary of The Divine Comedy--no easy feat. In fact, unless you just love Dante, this version is about all you need to know as an adult, too. ;)