Young Adult Historical Novels: Medieval TimesThis page lists historical novels for young adult readers set in medieval times (the Middle Ages), from approximately the sixth century (beginning in 500 A.D.) up to the Renaissance in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Life in the Middle Ages was harsh for many people, sometimes even for the nobility and royalty. Major events that occurred in medieval times include the Norman Conquest of England in 1066; the Crusades, when Christian soldiers from across Europe fought against the Arabs who ruled Jerusalem; and the Hundred Years War, when the teenaged peasant girl Joan of Arc led a French army to victory against the English. Many of these novels are also read and enjoyed by older adults. The Renaissance began at different times in different places, earliest in Italy where the Medici family (the great banking family who ruled Florence) sponsored philosophers, artists and other educated men who began a great flowering of culture in the fifteenth century that soon spread across Europe. Novels set in Renaissance Italy and Tudor England will appear on the forthcoming Renaissance page. Jump to: Medieval Celts, A.D. 500-1300 Abbreviations for Awards and Honors: ALANCB = American Library Association Notable Children's Book Medieval Celts, A.D. 500-1300
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Janet McNaughton, An Earthly Knight (2004), historical fantasy about a sixteen-year-old girl in twelfth-century Scotland who falls in love with a mysterious stranger instead of the king's brother she is meant to marry. BBYA. Medieval Anglo-Saxons, A.D. 500-1066
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Rosemary Sutcliff, Beowulf: Dragonslayer (1961), a retelling of the Anglo-Saxon story of the warrior who defeats a terrible monster who has been killing the king's men. Rebecca Tingle, The Edge on the Sword (2001), about the eldest daughter of King Alfred, fifteen-year-old Athelflaed, and how she learns the arts of war. BBYA. Recommended for grades 6-10. Rebecca Tingle, Far Traveler (2005), about the sixteen-year-old daughter of Athelflaed, the Lady of Mercia, who after her mother's death disguises herself as a bard in order to escape a diplomatic marriage to an older man; sequel to The Edge on the Sword. BBYA. Theresa Tomlinson, Wolf Girl (2006), about a girl in Anglo-Saxon times who sets out to prove the innocence of her mother, at risk of being hanged for stealing a valuable necklace. Medieval England from 1066
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Karen Cushman, The Midwife's Apprentice (1995), about an orphaned girl taken in by a midwife in medieval England. Recommended for grades 6-9 by TRA. NA. BBYA. Karen Cushman, Matilda Bone (2000), about a well-educated girl in medieval England whose life changes when she becomes the assistant to a bonesetter. Jill Eckersley, The Silver Rose Mollie Hunter, The King's Swift Rider: A Novel on Robert the Bruce Sherryl Jordan, The Raging Quiet (1999), about a sixteen-year-old girl who, after being forced to marry an older man, discovers a boy the villagers believe to be possessed by demons is actually just deaf. BBYA. Laura Amy Schlitz (illustrations by Robert Byrd), Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village (2007), linked verses (mostly) in the voices of children aged about ten to fifteen in a medieval village. NA. Recommended for ages 10 and up. Review Rosemary Sutcliff, Shield Ring (1956), about a Saxon boy and girl living in a secluded valley that has become the last holdout against the Normans after the Norman Conquest of England. Recommended for ages 12 and up. Rosemary Sutcliff, Knight’s Fee (1960), about an orphaned boy in Norman England who is wagered in a game of chess after he angers the lord of Arundel Castle. Recommended for grades 9-12. Theresa Tomlinson, The Forestwife Theresa Tomlinson, Child of the May Theresa Tomlinson, The Path of the She-Wolf Jane Yolen and Robert J. Harris, Girl in a Cage (2002), about the daughter of King Robert the Bruce of Scotland, Princess Marjorie, publicly imprisoned in a cage after she is captured by the English. BBYA. Recommended for grades 6-10. BBYA. Medieval Europe, the Continent and Byzantium
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Nancy Garden, Dove and Sword: A Novel of Joan of Arc (1995), about the brother and a childhood friend of Joan of Arc who remember her life. Recommended for grades 7-12. Donna Jo Napoli, Breath (2003), about a boy in Hameln, Germany, who has a chronic lung disease and escapes a plague of madness suffered by the other townfolk; based on the legend of the pied piper and actual historical events. BBYA. Gloria Skurzynski, Spider's Voice (1999), about a boy in Paris who carries messages between his master, Abelard, and Abelard's beautiful student Eloise. BBYA. Frances Temple, The Ramsay Scallop (1994), about a fourteen-year-old English girl who goes on a pilgrimage to Spain with her husband-to-be. BBYA. Recommended for grades 7-12. The Crusades
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Michael Cadnum, The Book of the Lion K.M. Grant, Blood Red Horse K.M. Grant, Green Jasper K.M. Grant, Blaze of Silver Catherine Jinks, Pagan's Crusade (1993), about a sixteen-year-old boy who becomes squire to a Templar knight just before the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin's forces; #1 in the Pagan series. Recommended for grades 7 and up. Review Catherine Jinks, Pagan in Exile (2004), about a squire to a Templar knight who returns to France in 1188 after Jerusalem falls; #2 in the Pagan series. Recommended for grades 7 and up. Catherine Jinks, Pagan's Vows (2004), about a squire to a former Templar knight who enters a convent and finds all is not well within its walls; #3 in the Pagan series. Recommended for grades 7 and up. Catherine Jinks, Pagan's Scribe (2005), about a boy hired by an Archdeacon 1209 to serve as his scribe as a crusade against the Cathar heretics in France begins; #4 in the Pagan series. Recommended for grades 7 and up. The Vikings
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Nancy Farmer, The Sea of Trolls (2004), historical fantasy about an eleven-year-old boy and his younger sister who are kidnapped by Vikings in the year 793. BBYA. Jackie French, Rover (2007), about a farm girl and her dog who are taken captive by Viking raiders. Rosemary Sutcliff, Sword Song (1997), about a sixteen-year-old boy in Viking Scotland who becomes a warrior after he is exiled from his home; a manuscript discovered and published after the author's death in 1992. Recommended for ages 10 and up. Top of Page
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(1998), about a girl who runs away from her father to find the boy she loves, who is fighting on the side of the future King Richard III during the Wars of the Roses.
(2000), about a sixteen-year-old boy who the army of Robert the Bruce of Scotland as a courier and spy during the rebellion against England. Recommended for grades 7-12.
(1993), about a fifteen-year-old girl who flees to Sherwood Forest to escape an arranged marriage and joins a community of outlaws; #1 in the Forest Wife trilogy, available in an omnibus edition titled 
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(1998), about a girl who grew up in Sherwood Forest after her mother was murdered; #2 in the Forest Wife trilogy, available in an omnibus edition titled 
(1998), about a woman of the forest whose healing skills are needed during an uprising against King John; #3 in the Forest Wife trilogy, available in an omnibus edition titled 
(1996), about a girl condemned as a witch who escapes execution by going on crusade with her father during the First Crusade. BBYA. Recommended for grades 6-8.
(2000), about a seventeen-year-old boy who serves as squire to a knight on his way to join Richard the Lionheart's army in the Holy Land during the Third Crusade. Recommended for grades 7-12.
(2005), about two thirteen-year-old boys, one Christian and one Muslim, fighting on opposide sides during a battle between the armies of Richard the Lionheart and Saladin during the Third Crusade; #1 in the De Granville trilogy. Recommended for grades 5-9.
(2005), about two English brothers who return from the Crusades to find England in turmoil because King Richard has not returned; #2 in the De Granville trilogy. Recommended for grades 5-9.
(2007), about a young Englishman chosen to help collect and deliver the ransom to free King Richard from imprisonment, and a young Arab in the Middle East who is in trouble for refusing to kill Saladin; #3 in the De Granville trilogy. Recommended for grades 5-9.