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The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog

Adam Gidwitz

Overview

 

An exciting and hilarious medieval adventure from the bestselling author of A Tale Dark and Grimm. 
  
“A profound and ambitious tour de force. Gidwitz is a masterful storyteller.” – Matt de la Peña, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author 
  
“What Gidwitz accomplishes here is staggering." – New York Times Book Review

Beautifully illustrated throughout! Includes a detailed historical note and bibliography.
 
1242. On a dark night, travelers from across France cross paths at an inn and begin to tell stories of three children. Their adventures take them on a chase through France: they are taken captive by knights, sit alongside a king, and save the land from a farting dragon. On the run to escape prejudice and persecution and save precious and holy texts from being burned, their quest drives them forward to a final showdown at Mont Saint-Michel, where all will come to question if these children can perform the miracles of saints. 
  
Join William, an oblate on a mission from his monastery; Jacob, a Jewish boy who has fled his burning village; and Jeanne, a peasant girl who hides her prophetic visions. They are accompanied by Jeanne's loyal greyhound, Gwenforte . . . recently brought back from the dead. Told in multiple voices, in a style reminiscent of The Canterbury Tales, our narrator collects their stories and the saga of these three unlikely allies begins to come together. 

Beloved bestselling author Adam Gidwitz makes his long awaited return with his first new world since his hilarious and critically acclaimed Grimm series. Featuring manuscript illuminations throughout by illustrator Hatem Aly and filled with Adam’s trademark style and humor, The Inquisitor's Tale is bold storytelling that’s richly researched and adventure-packed.

"Earthy humor and high culture ... Hatem Aly’s illuminated marginalia heighten the pleasure of this sparkling medieval adventure." —Wall Street Journal

★ "Gidwitz strikes literary gold with this mirthful and compulsively readable adventure story. . . . A masterpiece of storytelling that is addictive and engrossing." —Kirkus, starred review

★ "Gidwitz is on fire here, making medieval history feel fresh and current." —School Library Journal, starred review

★ "Gidwitz proves himself a nimble storyteller as he weaves history, excitement, and multiple narrative threads into a taut, inspired adventure." —Booklist, starred review

★ "A well-researched and rambunctiously entertaining story that has as much to say about the present as it does the past." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "[A] philosophical swashbuckler." —Shelf Awareness, starred review

The Inquisitor’s Tale is equal parts swashbuckling epic, medieval morality play, religious polemic and bawdy burlesque, propelling us toward a white-knuckle climax where three children must leap into a fire to save…a Talmud. And yet, the rescue of this single book feels like higher stakes than any world-incinerating superhero battle.”  —New York Times Book Review