cover image Belle’s Song

Belle’s Song

K.M. Grant. Walker, $17.99 (300p) ISBN 978-0-8027-2275-1

Belle, the 15-year-old daughter of a 14th-century bell founder, would do anything to change that tragic day when her carelessness resulted in crippling her father. In an effort to atone, Belle practices mortification of the flesh, rubbing her legs raw and bloody with a pumice stone; when this doesn’t feel like enough, she joins Geoffrey Chaucer himself and his fellow pilgrims on their way to the tomb of St. Thomas, hoping for a miracle to heal her father. In this retelling of The Canterbury Tales, Grant (the Perfect Fire trilogy) takes up Chaucer’s funny, bawdy style, as she draws Belle into the raucous world of his wandering pilgrims. Along the way, Belle meets two romantic suitors—Luke, the alchemist’s son, and Walter de Pleasance, the knight’s squire—both of whom add satisfying romantic encounters to her story. Filled with political intrigue, vivid historical detail, and poignant moments, this homage to Chaucer’s beloved verse should delight both adult fans of the Tales and teens who will have likely first encountered them in English lit classes. Ages 12–up. (Nov.)