Brother William's Year: A Monk at Westminster Abbey
Narrated by a fourteenth-century monk, this lightly informative picture book takes readers through his activities during 12 months at Westminster Abbey: making “a snowmonk and a snowdog” in January; beginning his restricted Lenten diet in February; taking daffodils to a sick Brother in March; washing the feet of the poor on Maundy Thursday in April; welcoming novices to the monastery in May; napping in the garden on a sunny June afternoon, and so on. Every month is represented by several activities illustrated on a double-page spread with a number of small gouache paintings in a naive style. Two of the entries include modern recipes for medieval dishes, Lenten leek soup and cherry pottage. An appended note comments on the building of the monastery in Westminster, London, and aspects of a monk’s life in 1383. Written and illustrated by the current head gardener at Westminster Abbey, this attractive picture book captures the rhythm of a monastery year. Grades 2-4. --Carolyn Phelan