One frosty night he speaks to his young son Carl: One day you will rule over all my lands Was he to be dispossessed? Yet Carl sees that Charlemagne is determined to do what he feels is best to serve God and Europe. This many-faceted story will stir the minds and imaginations of young people. Through Carl's eyes we discover the grand dimensions of western Europe's foundation. The Best Books of Check out the top books of the year on our page Best Books of Product details Format Paperback pages Dimensions Looking for beautiful books?
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Galen and the Gateway to Medicine Jeanne Bendick. Hittite Warrior Joanne Williamson. Winged Watchman Hilda Van Stockum. Son of Charlemagne Barbara Willard. This narrative did not gloss over the king's brutal side and how it was sometimes in direc This book would be a good companion to more historically-oriented texts. This narrative did not gloss over the king's brutal side and how it was sometimes in direct conflict with the Christian values which he was trying to preserve.
I do not recommend reading this book without some background knowledge.
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This is by no means meant as a criticism. The novel is not lacking in content.
I'm only emphasizing how to get the most out of it. May 24, Marius S rated it really liked it Shelves: This book was read for school, and that, with the fact that this is set in an era formerly unread by myself, caused me to mentally yawn a bit at the beginning. Sure, it took a bit to get into.
The young characters are so mature and they "talk proper" and all that. All in all, I wouldn't wish to be a royal child; I can't take that much responsibility. And a lot of the time the Catholic Christian practices, though engaging, were plain weird; all that practically worshiping the pope was odd Pease, take no offense if you are Catholic, but it is strange to moi. Although it doesn't cover everything , I suggest looking Charlemagne and his family up in Wikipedia or such if you want to go into great detail I highly recommend this book if you'd like to focus on the courts rather than the battles of this time.
In Son of Charlemagne , Willard masterfully paints a vivid representation of the sacrifices, the honors, and the bravery not found exclusively on battlefields it takes to be a king Oct 18, Cheryl rated it it was amazing. We enjoyed this story of Charlemagne told by viewing the life of one of his sons, Carl. While not intensely detailed in regards to his historical battles, though they are referenced and one particularly brutal event is covered intensely , it gives more of an insider view with the focus on his family life. That was very interesting! This incredible world leader was a devoted family man who desired for his children to travel with him whenever possible.
He humbly sought a better education for hims We enjoyed this story of Charlemagne told by viewing the life of one of his sons, Carl. He humbly sought a better education for himself, his children and his subjects. This focus led to the Carolingian Renaissance. While Charles the Great certainly had flaws, those too were inspiring examples.
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These multifacted qualities resulted in his rise from King of the Franks to coronation as Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Son of Charlemagne was written very personally, a tender glimpse into the real life struggles of a political giant. Aug 08, Veronica rated it really liked it. A good supplement to learning about Charlemagne.
Charlemagne
This book takes a look into Medieval Times, specifically into Charlemagne's rein as King and eventually emperor. His triumphs, his sorrows, and his shortcomings are seen in this tale from the point of view of one of his sons, Carl. There are many characters so I sometimes had difficulty understanding who was who, but overall it was an educational and interesting tale. Feb 11, Lora rated it liked it. My teen son and I read this together because we were in the mood for a historical novel set in the distant past.
Most books I found had female protagonists, so we chose this one.
- Son of Charlemagne | Bethlehem Books.
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We're glad we read it, because we were able to learn about Charlemagne, his children and the 8th century. From what I can tell from Wikipedia, the people, places and timeline are historically correct. It is categorized as a children's book, but it is by no means childish and the main character is an adult for much of th My teen son and I read this together because we were in the mood for a historical novel set in the distant past. It is categorized as a children's book, but it is by no means childish and the main character is an adult for much of the book. The 8th century was a time which was more scholarly than I expected, but could definitely be barbaric Pope Leo was attacked and they attempted to "pluck out his eyes and his tongue".
Charlemagne was ambitious and made many cruel decisions. He regretted both moments of strength and moments of weakness. He was prone to arrogance, and he prayed simultaneously to be saved from his arrogance and to have it strengthened to serve God's purpose. The writing was understandably old fashioned. It was after all meant to signal the distance past. There were some nice lines, for example: Jun 13, Rachel rated it liked it Shelves: A fairly good story of this certain period of time in the Dark Ages.
Though my siblings said they had enjoyed this when they read it for school, I couldn't seem to connect well with the characters, and there wasn't much of a plot to carry you along in the book. However it's a nice clean fiction and I think I may have enjoyed it more had I known a little bit more background on the history of Charlemagne - as the book shares more of the family history than "world" history of the events going on. I A fairly good story of this certain period of time in the Dark Ages. It is a good supplement for this period.
Jan 05, Heidi Willis rated it really liked it Shelves: My daughter and I read this book before getting to the history unit on Charlemagne. The book itself was interesting and fairly easy to read, although not by any means gripping, it did give solid history in a novel setting, so that when we studied Charlemagne and the rise of the Holy Roman Empire, we had a lot of background knowledge already. It then felt as though those "characters" in history were real people we could understand better.
It's a quick read, and it brings up a lot of good discussio My daughter and I read this book before getting to the history unit on Charlemagne. It's a quick read, and it brings up a lot of good discussion ideas, such as conquering people in war in order to convert them and save their souls and the use of children as bargaining tools in marriage to further your kingdom.
Sep 25, Lucinda rated it really liked it. I am currently reading through books of historical figures in the middle ages written for youth to see if they will be appropriate for the 15 boys in the Knights of Virtue class I am teaching and I really liked this book.
Son of Charlemagne
It has a lot of vocabulary that little kids would have to look up but I know they would enjoy the story. Until now, I really knew nothing about Charlemagne or "Charles the Great", the greatest king to ever live! It was an enlightening book on the struggle of being a Christian k I am currently reading through books of historical figures in the middle ages written for youth to see if they will be appropriate for the 15 boys in the Knights of Virtue class I am teaching and I really liked this book.
It was an enlightening book on the struggle of being a Christian king who brutally slaughtered people in religious wars. The book states that we owe the formation of Europe to him.
Charlemagne - Wikipedia
It's a quick easy read and I recommend to adults too! Aug 09, LuAnn rated it really liked it. For an adult, this story is an interesting and fast-paced narrative introduction to Charles the Great, Charlemagne, who lived around and was the first Holy Roman Emperor. For a younger person, the subtle politics and lack of one obvious overarching plot might be confusing and boring, though seeing the people and events through his son and other children somewhat mitigates this.
Charlemagne's complex ambition, piety, faults and strengths are presented and his contributions to learning are fea For an adult, this story is an interesting and fast-paced narrative introduction to Charles the Great, Charlemagne, who lived around and was the first Holy Roman Emperor. Charlemagne's complex ambition, piety, faults and strengths are presented and his contributions to learning are featured.
This story helps fill the dearth of fiction on this interesting time period in Europe. Mar 18, Mathias Seiwert rated it it was amazing. Fantastic historical fiction book that I read out-loud to my ten year old daughter J. I would have loved for the book to go into even more detail, but that was not the book's purpose. The book gave a great big-picture overview of a twenty year section of the life of Charles the Great and his family and whet our appetites to learn more about the ways that this man's life has impacted life in the western hemisphere over the last 1, years. May 20, Laurie Smith rated it it was ok Shelves: Informative, interesting and factual.
It is suitable for ages 10 and up and is an easy reader. I found the book very factual and I did not identify with the characters. I would not read it again and would only reccomend it for people who enjoy history. Nov 17, Christa R rated it it was ok Shelves: We were left with many questions and it didn't flow well for us. Why did Charlemagne have to make his little sons kings? What were the discussions with the Pope? We didn't really get the struggle about him being the emperor?
Was it because of the strategic break with Constantinople because of Empress Irene?