Crispin: The Cross of Lead by
Avi My rating:
2 of 5 stars Crispin: The Cross of Lead is the first in a series by Avi about a young peasant without a name, growing up in 14th century England. Known only as Asta's son, the young man and his mother are beyond poor and ostracized even by the other peasants of the small village they live in. When Asta dies, the steward of the town declares that Asta's son has stolen money and that he is to be considered a Wolf's Head, meaning anyone can freely kill them, as they are no longer human. On the run, the priest who helps him is murdered but not before revealing his name, Crispin. Crispin escapes being chased by guards, he eventually makes his way to a town, which has been completely wiped out by the plague. In the town he comes across a giant beast of a man, known as Bear, who forces him to swear allegiance to him. The two then start off on a much bigger journey, with far reaching implications.
This is the first book I've read by Avi, though I know he is quite well known. I found the book to be interesting, I think Avi did a very good job in communicating the religious feelings and life that people lived in that time period. Too often, books set in this time period will gloss over religion despite the fact that it played a major role in the lives of the people, especially the peasants.
The book is a young adult book, and probably even a middle-grade level book. It does what it does well, but advanced readers will have no problem knowing exactly what is going to happen at every step of the plot, and will probably find the whole thing pretty shallow. But this would probably be a good book for young readers to get started on. I will likely continue to read the other books in the series as well, but they will not be a priority for me.
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