A Medieval Feast: An Award-Winning Picture Book about Preparing for a King's Visit for Children (Ages 4-8)

by Aliki

A beautifully illustrated, award-winning, and fascinating look at the Middle Ages by Aliki, the beloved creator of many popular books for children. The King is coming to visit! The lord and lady of Camdenton Manor must work quickly to prepare for his arrival. It will take weeks to ready rooms, set up tents, and prepare the feast itself. Everyone is busy hunting and hawking, brewing and churning. “A veritable feast of a book.”— School Library Journal This nonfiction picture book about life in medieval times features detailed illustrations to explore again and again. “A sumptuous look at the gastronomic inclinations of nobility in the Middle Ages is parlayed into a fascinating story about an upcoming visit to Camdenton Manor by the king and his large retinue.”— Booklist Supports the Common Core State Standards

Genres: Picture Books, History, Medieval, Childrens, Nonfiction, Medieval History, Realistic Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Aliki has written and illustrated many books, both fiction and nonfiction, loved by readers throughout the world. The books were inspired by a word, an experience, or the desire to find out. Aliki lives in London, England.

Reviews

[Manybooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although Aliki's A Medieval Feast does provide a basic and very much enlightening, informative representation of what a traditional European Mediaval feast would have both generally and specifically entailed (from the long and expensive preparations beforehand to the actual feasting itself, which usually took many many hours, often even days and obviously was the epitome of willful and wasteful decadence, with the consumption of vast amounts of different types of animal species, including large birds such as peacocks, cranes, swans and herons being one of the main and to me rather nauseating features) and while I did even to a certain point very much enjoy and appreciate both Aliki's text and her accompanying illustrations (pictorial images that are descriptive, colourful and delightfully detailed, both mirroring and often even expanding on the printed words, on the featured narrative), I for one have also felt more than a bit underwhelmed, as there is so much information that I do personally consider to be missing from A Medieval Feast or at the very least not having been sufficiently covered and explained by the author.

Yes, A Medieval Feast is a book primarily conceptualised for and geared towards children (older children above the ages of eight or nine in my opinion, but still meant for children and not, say, young adults) and thus I certainly was not in any way expecting a detailed analysis of in particular feudalism within the text proper (within the actual narrative itself). However, I still was kind of expecting a bit more of an in depth analysis of the latter (of feudalism as a system) in the author's note, and the lack of this (that basically feudalism has not really been at all well enough explained, that it is never really all that much mentioned by Aliki that the serfs living on their lord's manor were basically indentured to him, were basically in many ways his slaves, and that the lord of the manor was also, in turn, indentured to the king, was the king's slave and could also therefore never really say "no" to the king coming to spend a few nights at the manor house during his travels, his so-called progresses) this all is for and to me a truly majorly frustrating academic shortcoming (not to mention that there is also NO bibliographical information whatsoever included, which really does make A Medieval Feast pretty well useless for any type of supplemental research and study).

And thus, while I certainly have very much and appreciatively enjoyed especially the accompanying illustrations of A Medieval Feast, my personal frustrations with both the quality of the presented text (and specifically, in particular, with what has been left out, with what has not been more meticulously, more adequately explained in detail with regard to the entire concept of feudalism) and of course, the for and to me rather sadly unforgivable lack of supplemental reading suggestions, of any type of source acknowledgment, makes me grant only two stars at best and to also only recommend A Medieval Feast with some rather major reservations and caveats (although I do indeed appreciate Alicki's artistic renderings and actually do not even mind the presented narrative for what it is, but that still does not mean I can just accept and excuse what has been left out of A Medieval Feast as these types of intellectual failings, and especially with regard to not including any bibliographical information and references, period, in a historically and thus reality, non fiction dependent and based picture book, just do very massively and majorly rub me the wrong proverbial way).

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The work that goes into preparing a banquet for a King is a costly and time-consuming event today, but back in the 1400s it would have been an overwhelming ordeal. Aliki has made such an event come alive in this colorful book.

This is ideal to read aloud, and to do so more than once. The first time, it's sufficient to read the line of text on each page and look at the pictures. But if the child shows any interest in either the art or the text, it's easy to go deeper. Every detail in the pictures adds to the story of the labor, the setting, and the life style. Then, at the end of the book, there's a page of additional info for the interested reader.

For example, on page 10 ...

The text reads, They trapped rabbits and birds of all kinds, ...

The art shows people, men and women, outside using various kinds of traps to catch the rabbits and birds.

The caption built into the art reads, Serfs hid in bushes and caught birds in traps.

And the border around the heart illustrates and labels various types of birds, including sparrow, eagle, curlew, blackbird, woodcock, lark, and mallard.

We used to hear an advertising jingle about 'giving the gift that keeps on giving.' That applies to this book; there's always more to see if the reader keeps on looking.

[Ro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how people from medieval times would bake a cake and put birds in it and when you cut it open all the birds would fly out. Plus, I really love the the chicken-pig.

[Set · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book mentions a bit of Feudal life by detailing tidbits of preparations for the King's visit while he is in Procession of his lands. His vassal, the Lord of a Manor, must make haste and have the a feast prepared for over 100 mouths. I always find out something new in these medieval books; I already knew what a Subtletey is but I just learned what a Cockentrice is and now I can tell people to go eat a Cockentrice. I actually want to try the Egerdouce and the Bukkenade. The Illustrations are childlike with a whiff of a medieval air to them.

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the worst possible way to introduce a young child to the Middle Ages. I think the What Life Was Like series is better, but that may be intended for somewhat older readers. This is almost like a book that you read to a young child. Medievalists will recognize the inspiration for many of the illustrations. (The Très Riches Heures, among others.)

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of good & not so well known facts about medieval feasts. Great book for castle/king/Queen/knight lovers.

2019 Reading: just so much to love about this book and the facts in it. I’ve been studying the Tudor period and so we had a great discussion.

[Melissa Swistek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Learned some neat details about medieval festal preparations. Something was missing narratively to make this book really memorable for us though.

[Taylor Howard]

A Medieval Feast is a story about a King who travels to a Lords estate on his way through the country land. The Lord prepared many different kinds of elaborate food from the harvest because he knew he would have to feed many mouths when the King came to visit. The whole story is about the preparation of the food, tents,entertainment and much more that is done for the King.

The illustrations were amazing, Aliki illustrates nearly everything she describes in her writing. She describes about the works of medieval art that inspired the illustrations and you can see it in the figures. I loved the intricate borders around the pages.

I would have upper elementary students read this book because the vocabulary was a bit advanced. I loved how this book was very informative but also a fun story. The sentences at the bottom of the page helped the reader get a lot of background information without being distracted with it in the story.

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated book about the kind of medieval feast given when the king came to visit the castle of a vassal . . . The pictures are really gorgeous and the book itself is very well done!

[Anthony Minieri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical-Fiction
Awards: N/A
Appropriate Grade Levels: 1-5
Summary: The king is coming and a feast must be prepared for his arrival. The whole story revolves around the preparation of the feast. Between setting up tents, hunting, cooking, decorating, brewing, and churning, it certainly appears as though it will be a day fit for a king. The lord and lady of Camdenton Manor must work diligently for the special occasion.
Review: A Medieval Feast is a great story that derives from historical traditions. I enjoyed the story mostly due to the amount of food that was being prepared--it makes the story quite hilarious. The illustrations within the book add to the appeal and I believe that children would gravitate towards the story for this reason.
In-Class Uses:
-Use as a complement to a social studies lesson
-Read the story and follow up with a journal assignment asking students to envision their own feast that they would prepare for the king

[Capn · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a reference book or guide, excellent. Not much of a story, however. Detailed illustrations and factual marginalia. 4/5, because it really does give you enough information to host your own Medieval Feast. And why shouldn't you? A great Covid shut-in activity, provided you can get groceries, and also good for a small thematic dinner party with friends, young and old. Especially if you go potluck. You could bring a roasted rotisserie chicken, wine and some flatbreads (pita, tortillas in a pinch? Or cut round loaves in half to make two bowls) for trenchers and you'd be nearly done! You could even make those pointed hats from cardboard leftover from your last Amazon order (or posterboard), or failing that, papier mâché from newspaper - you could kill hours with kids just decorating the dining room with draped sheets over chair backs, etc. I think you should do it. Celebrate the end of a lockdown, a plague you survived, as our forebearers would have done.

[Rebekah Stuckey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a historical fiction account of the medival times and specifically focuses on feasts and eating. It includes large illustrations along with facts about the time period. It goes over the hunting, specific animals eaten, breads made, guests attending, and festivities that would happen at the feast. This book would be a great read for engaging students on this specific time frame. It's fun to learn about other cultures especially from different periods in history and from around the world. I gave it 3 stars because I would've liked to seen more accurate photos of what's described in the book but I did enjoy the illustrations as well.

[Rachel Gilbertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was interesting how this book talks about the different roles that took place during Medieval times, such as the roles of the King and Queen and the people that helped them such as Serfs. A very good history lesson, good book when teaching about this time period!
This book gave a good depiction of what took place in order to have a feast during Medieval times. I loved how this book provided actual examples of foods that were eaten during a feast, that was my favorite part of the book.
Overall a great read!!

[Danielle Tulp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awards: N/A
Appropriate Age Level: 1-5 grade
Original Summary: This books tells about the preparation for the King's arrival during medieval times.
Original Review: This book provides lots of details and pictures with captions to describe life during this time. Great book for learning about the history of the middle ages.
In-Class Uses: This book could be used in an elementary classroom learning about medieval times. Students can create a play and make their own version of this story.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A Medieval Feast" by Aliki is a great book to teach children the history of Medieval times while seeming like a fiction story. The book includes many nonfiction facts about this time period while telling a story about preparing a meal for a king. Throughout the book are many beautiful and colorful illustrations that children will love!

[Jeff Lewonczyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why isn't Aliki mentioned in the same breath as Seuss, Sendak and the Provensens? She was (and still is!) hugely prolific, with a style and sensibility that reflect the late 20th-century zeitgeist. Is it because her books are so often more overtly educational? I dunno. Anyway, I love her work, and this glimpse at the extravagant preparations for a royal manor visit ca. 1400 is a delight.

[Marissa Dunbar · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this book at all, it may be a good book to use when talking about the Renaissance, but I did not find it interesting, the way the print and pictures were laid out, it was very confusing. I got very bored quickly reading this.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read this book during our homeschool lesson on the Medieval age. The pictures were really well done and there were tons of great facts about feudal life in the 1400s. We'll definitely be checking this one out again.

[Michelle Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful way to introduce the medieval feast. Beautiful illustrations with just enough information to peak interest into a deeper study. Probably about a 5 minute read aloud, but could be longer if you read the some of the captions beside the pictures to the students.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge medieval nerd, so I thought this was super interesting. I loved the illustration style and subject matter. However lots of the descriptions of things they were eating nearly made me physically sick. So many weird meat concoctions--ergh!

[Eliot DeLorme · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well done children’s fiction book telling a historically based story of a medieval feast. The kids and I loved it and all the little attention to detail! The art was exceptional. Those medieval folks knew how to throw a feast! Challenge accepted. Easter, here we come!

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the kind of book I would have pored over for hours as a kid. So many details about the food and all the preparations the lord had to make if the king was visiting. The illustrations are even in the medieval style. It's just gorgeous and full of information that sparks imagination!

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story for kids. Love the illustrations, shows kids what life was like back in medieval times

[Jamie Gottlieb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Children's picture book - very well done historical fiction for children

[Mh Weyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations. Interesting glimpse into the medieval world.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are wonderful and add more details to the storyline.

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vibrantly illustrated, this gives a great picture of a special feast in a castle when the king came to visit. We enjoyed it.

[Nahuatl P Vargas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me encanta aprender sobre el medievo.
Los libros de Aliki son re lindos.
Recomiendo para niños de preescolar y primaria baja.

[Nolan Brendel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I kind of didn’t like it because they ate stuff that I didn’t want them to eat and it made me sad.

[Laurie Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful picture book detailing the history of Medieval feasts. My kids and I read this in our Classical Dialectic homeschool studies.