Suggested
Grade Levels

K = Kindergarten
(Picture Books)

E = Elementary:
Grades 1-3
(detailed Picture Books
& easy reading)

E-UE = (books for
younger, fluent readers)

UE = Upper Elementary:
Grades 4-6

JH = Junior High:
Grades 6-8

HS = High School:
Grades 9-12

+ = "and up"

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MIDDLE AGES BOOKLIST — 400-1000 A.D.

Our Medieval History Book List includes literature for children and teens based on important people and events in a typical study of the Middle Ages. The titles are organized by general topics on one page and then chronologically on the next two pages, and include both historical fiction and nonfiction. Access the complete World History list by clicking on the menu to the left for selections from other time periods or historical eras.

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c. 400-1200: Saints & Monks
400s: Attila the Hun
500s: King Arthur & other (semi-) legends & China
600's: Islam
600's: Saxon Invasion of Britain
700's: Beowulf, c. A.D. 725-1000
700's: Charlemagne 763-814
800's: Alfred the Great
800's: Arabian Nights, c. 786-808
900's: Ethelred
800's - 1000's: Vikings

Suggested Grade Levels
K = Kindergarten(Picture Books) E = Elementary: Grades 1-3 (Detailed Picture Books & Easy Reading) E-UE = (Books for Younger, Fluent Readers)	UE = Upper Elementary: Grades 4-6 JH = Junior High: Grades 6-8 HS = High School: Grades 9-12 + = "and up"

MIDDLE AGES c. 400-1200: Saints & Monks

c. 270-342: St. Nicholas

Saint Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend by Julie Stiegemeyer, illus. Chris Ellison. Concordia. K-E
Beautiful picture book explaining the kind and gentle historical figure behind Santa Claus.

39?-461: St. Patrick

Saint Patrick by Anne Tombert, ill. Michael Garland. Boyds Mills Press, 1998. E-UE
Story is based on one of St. Patrick's letters. Artwork is by an award-winning illustrator.

St. Patrick's Day by Joyce K. Kessel, illus. Cathy Gilchrist. Carolrhoda Books, 1982. K-E
Told simply, but includes more history than most on this level. Black & white sketch illustrations.

The Story of Saint Patrick by James A. Janda.

484-577: St. Brendan

Brendan the Navigator: A History Mystery About the Discovery of America by Jean Fritz.

521-597: Columcille (or Columba)

Across A Dark & Wild Sea by Don Brown, illus. Roaring Brook Press, 2002. E-UE+
Fascinating picture book about a monk who made a huge impact in his native Ireland during the Dark Ages, and in Scotland as well. Great story; provides insight into the culture. Recommended.

The Man Who Loved Books by Jean Fritz, illus. by Trina S. Hyman. G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1981. E-UE+
Two-color illustrations accompany the story of Columba's entire life, and the telling is based on legend. Fascinating.

597, landed at Kent: St. Augustine

Augustine Came to Kent (Living History Library) by Barbara Willard.

1182-1226: St Francis of Assisi

Francis: The Poor Man of Assisi by Tomie de Paola. Holiday House, 1982. E-UE+
Depicts St. Francis' life of poverty in devotion to God. Dramatizes him as a worker of miracles, to the point that he supernaturally receives Christ's crucifixion wounds in his hands, feet, & sides.

The Road to Damietta by Scott O'Dell. JH-HS

MIDDLE AGES 400s: Attila the Hun

The White Stag by Kate Seredy. The Viking Press, 1937, 1965. UE+
Newbery Medal. A dramatization of old Hun-Magyar legends of pagan gods, moonmaidens, and the Red Eagle, where the people are supernaturally led from Asia westward and are given their powerful leader, Attila.

MIDDLE AGES 500s: King Arthur and other (semi-) legends

Knights of the Round Table

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The Boy's King Arthur by Sidney Lanier, illus N. C. Wyeth. *JH+
This version of the story gives lots of detail about knights. *Old English vocabulary can be challenging.

King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table (Puffin Classics) by Roger Lancelyn Green. UE+

King Arthur : Tales from the Round Table ed. Andrew Lang, illus. H. J. Ford. JH+

Saint George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges, illus. Trina Schart Hyman. Little, Brown & Co., 1984. E-UE
Caldecott Medal of Honor. Based on Spenser's "Faerie Queen," a heroic knight rescues a damsel in distress from a ferocious dragon.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Sir Orfeo by J.R.R. Tolkien. HS
Translation of the legend that was first written down c.1400.

The Hidden Treasure of Glaston by Elanore M. Jewett. UE+
Newbery Honor. A young boy in England (in 1171) looks for artifacts of King Arthur.

The Legend of King Arthur: A Young Reader's Edition of the Classic Story by Howard Pyle by David Borgenicht, illus. Luigi Galente, Simone Boni, Francesca D'Ottavi. E

The Once and Future King by T.H. White. JH-HS
See The Sword in the Stone by the same author, below.

The Story of King Arthur and His Knights by Howard Pyle. JH-HS
Classic Arthurian tales. The rest of the 4-book series includes: The Story of Sir Launcelot and His Companions, The Story of the Champions of the Round Table, and The Story of the Grail and the Passing of Arthur. Advanced UE

The Sword in the Stone by T. H. White. JH-HS
King Arthur, the boy; the first book in a four-part series based on Le Morte D'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory. The other books, in order, are: The Queen of Air and Darkness, The Ill Made Knight, and The Candle in the Wind, which can be hard to find. All 4 books are combined in The Once and Future King, listed above.

The Sword in the Tree by Clyde Robert Bulla. E-UE+
A young boy's adventures set in the exciting world of King Arthur and his knights.

Tales of King Arthur: The Sword in the Stone by Hudson Talbott. Morrow Junior Books, 1996. E-UE
With large, full-color illustrations, the stories of King Arthur captivate the reader's attention. Also in this series are Tales of King Arthur: King Arthur and the Round Table and Tales of King Arthur: Excalibur.

MIDDLE AGES 500s: China

Lady of Ch'iao Kuo: Warrior of the South, Southern China, A.D. 531 (The Royal Diaries) by Laurence Yep. Scholastic, 2001. E-UE
Fictionalized diary of a real Chinese princess in 531 AD.

MIDDLE AGES 600's: Islam

What Do We Know About Islam? (What Do We Know About Religions?) By Sharukh Husain. 1995. UE+
Explains what Islam is, where it originated, and how it has influenced world culture.

A 16th Century Mosque (Inside Story) by Fiona MacDonald, illus. Mark Bergin. Peter Bedrick Books, 1994. UE+
This book spans the centuries. Covers Mohammed, the spread of Islam, the Muslim civilization, and also the Ottoman Empire and its key rulers before detailing the mosque.

MIDDLE AGES 600's: Saxon Invasion of Britain

The Shining Company by Rosemary Sutcliff. JH+
Based on "The Gododdin," an early British poem, dramatizing a battle against the invading Saxons in the A.D. 600's.

MIDDLE AGES 700's: Beowulf, c. A.D. 725-1000

Beowulf : A Verse Translation, translated by Frederick Rebsamen.

Beowulf : A New Telling by Rober Nye. JH+
Written as a short story in modern English. The author identifies his work as an interpretation, rather than a translation. Recommended reading before tackling a translation. Caution: The monsters and their exploits are gruesome.

Beowulf the Warrior by Ian Serraillier. UE+

Beowulf: Dragon Slayer by Rosemary Sutcliff.

Favorite Medieval Tales (see Middle Ages: General Topics, Medieval Life)

MIDDLE AGES 700's: Charlemagne — ruler of the Franks A.D. 763-814

Son of Charlemagne (Living History Library) by Barbara Willard. UE+

Story of Roland by James Baldwin. Charles Scribner's Sons, 1883, 1930. JH-HS
Based on legends and traditions, historical truth is mingled with fantastical tales of strength and bravery, all centered around Charlemagne's legendary nephew, Roland.

MIDDLE AGES 800's: Alfred the Great

The Namesake: A Story of King Alfred by C. Walter Hodges. Coward-McCann, Inc., 1964. JH+
In answer to Britain's prayers to be delivered from 'the fury of the Northmen,' King Alfred led his people to reclaim their country from the Vikings.

MIDDLE AGES 800's: Arabian Nights, c. 786-808

Aladdin: the Magical Tale of a Boy and His Wonderful Lamp (DK Classic Readers) by Rosalind Kervin, Nilesh Mistry. Dorling Kindersley. E

The Legend of the Persian Carpet by Tomie DePaola, illus Claire Ewart. E-UE
Not from the Arabian Nights, but a Persian tale about the origin of the intricately-designed Oriental rug. Picture book.

One Thousand and One Arabian Nights (Oxford Illustrated Classics) retold by Geraldine McCaughrean. Oxford University Press. UE+

Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher. Atheneum Books, 1998. UE-JH
The story of the storyteller of "Arabian Nights." Shaharazad entertains the Sultan with nightly stories to stop him from killing her, or another wife, in the morning. Mystery and adventure surrounded by old Arabian customs and way of life. Caution: A mother disfigures her child's foot to protect the child from becoming one of the Sultan's wives and then kills herself.

Sindbad: From the Tales of the Thousand and One Nights by Ludmila Zeman. Tundra Books, 1999. *E-UE+
A wonderfully illustrated, advanced-E picture book. *Caution: Some of the story (such as Sindbad falling into a pit of vipers) may be frightening to a young child.

Tales from the Arabian Nights (Wordsworth Collection) by Andrew Lang. UE+
Originally translated from a French version, this classic collection of Eastern fairy tales has amused young & old for generations. Includes Ali Baba, Sinbad the Sailor, and Alladin.

MIDDLE AGES 900's: Ethelred

Black Fox of Lorne by Marguerite de Angeli. Doubleday, 1956.* JH+
When a Viking family tries to resettle with relatives in Britain, a storm veers them off course. Now captives in Scotland, they help overthrow evil leaders to win their freedom. They also encounter stories of the Christ, comparing this with their gods. *Out of print, but still available.

MIDDLE AGES 800's - 1000's: Vikings

Beorn the Proud (Living History Library) by Madeleine Polland. UE+
When the Vikings destroy her Irish village, one girl survives and is taken as a slave. Her courage brings her Viking captor to the true God.

Black Fox of Lorne by Marguerite de Angeli. Doubleday, 1956.* JH+
See description above.

D'Aulaires' Norse Gods and Giants by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire. E-UE+
The D'Aulaires tell tales completely, historically, and with flair, complementing them with superb illustrations.

Eric the Red: The Viking Adventurer (What's Their Story) by Neil Grant, illus. Victor Ambrus. Oxford Univ. Press, 1997. E-UE
The story reveals Viking life & culture, and tells of Eric's influence on his well-known son, Leif, and of their early visit to North America

Eric the Red and Leif the Lucky (Adventures in the New World) by Barbara Schiller. Troll Assoc., 1979. E-UE
Tells how Leif and his father explored western lands long before Columbus. Black & white illustrations.

Harald the Ruthless: The Saga of the Last Viking Warrior by Andrea Hopkins, illus. Leo Duranona. UE+
Story originates from a Viking saga, written down c. 1230. Harald's climax was his fateful invasion of England in 1066. Historical details are included in boxes to the side and a separate section at the end.

Leif The Lucky by Ingri & Edgar Parin D'Aulaire. Beautiful Feet Books, 1941, 1968. E-UE+
This book tells Leif's story like no other. His way of life, adventures, and influence are captivatingly told & well illustrated. Recommended.

The Namesake: A Story of King Alfred
(see entry above at Middle Ages 800's: Alfred the Great)

The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow by Allen French. UE+

Sword Song by Rosemary Sutcliff. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1997. UE
When a 16-year-old Viking boy is banished from his settlement for 5 years, he hires himself out as a swordsman, finding adventure and proving his worth.

The Viking Adventure by Clyde Robert Bulla. Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1963. UE
A Viking boy who idolizes Leif Ericson joins the crew of a ship sailing west to fulfill his dream of following in Leif's footsteps.

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Suggested Grade Levels