The Inquisitor's Tale

A mystical quest set in the Middle Ages with 3 intrepid kids? What's not to love?

Reads like Canterbury Tales meets The Phantom Tollbooth.

While fantastic at times, is very grounded in reality in high medieval France and has a great afterword by the author with more information.

Charming illustrations also!

The audiobook was excellent - great voices, music, & production. I loved the Canterbury tales, so I had a real soft spot for this style, but I'm not sure how many middle grade students are going to stick around for something so long and pretty obtuse. The timeless themes and messages of acceptance and love and strength of friendship and community were beautiful, and parts of the book are laugh-out-loud humorous. I felt a true affinity for the characters, and would be curious to see whether this book was a hit with the intended audience and not just adults.

This is the kind of book that I wish I could have read when I was younger. It manages to be fun and funny and exciting while offering ruminations on God, religion, race relations, and life in the Middle Ages. It didn't dumb anything down for younger people (even the farting dragon was based on actual myth!), but it wasn't afraid to be weird and goofy.

All in all, this is the best kid's book I've read in a long time–and just a really good book in general.