Chaucer for Children

This richly illustrated Chaucer storybook opens a door into the poet's world, using scenes from the Canterbury Tales to draw young readers toward its moral drama, comic energy, and emotional depth. Palamon and Arcite, Dorigen and Aurelius, the doomed Summoner, the sinful rioters, and the suffering of Griselda appear as vivid emblems of love, folly, greed, and endurance. Revised as an accessible introduction especially for a child named Lionel, the book offers retellings of several Canterbury Tales and shorter poems, supported by colored plates, woodcuts, and careful glossaries. Its foreword argues that Chaucer is surprisingly rewarding for children: his language is musical, memorable, and enriched by the old pronunciation, especially the sounding of final "e." With guidance for reading aloud, the text invites readers to hear the cadence of the Knight's Tale, the sorrow of the Clerk's Tale, and the liveliness of the Prologue. Alongside this literary guidance, it evokes medieval England—London, court life, and domestic customs—while presenting Chaucer himself as a learned, kind, observant storyteller and the Father of English Poetry. The Friar's bitterly comic tale of a corrupt Summoner and a devilish yeoman then showcases the book's blend of satire, moral insight, and narrative delight. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.