Parsifal's Page (The Squire's Tales Book 4)

I cried when this series ended. It is a fast-paced, witty, intelligent, and fun new take on King Arthur and his round table, the knights, Merlin, and the enchanting world of faeries. Worth a read. Everyone in my family loves these books and recommends them as often as possible.

As with all of Gerald Morris' Squires Tales, this one is filled with humor and adventure. It is a story of honor, family and making things right. The series is a wonderful retelling of Arthurian legends.

Funny and thought-provoking. My kids love this series. My daughter's entire Christmas list was made up of Gerald Morris's titles.

I loved this story!!!!! There are so many stories out there that include King Arthur and his knights. This is another, BUT it does it in a different way. Truly, I loved it. So did my son. There are some twists in the story that are unexpected. I love this -- I can't say that enough!

GREAT!!!!

This book is one of several in a series. They are well written, funny and have great characters that anyone can relate to and come to love.

The fourth entry in the Squire's Tale series. Piers--or Pierre, as he had much rather be called---longs for the glamour and glory of court, and despite his father's attempts to teach him his blacksmithing trade, years to be a squire, or at least a page. Soon his wish comes true, but not in the way he wanted--the knight he acquires sets out *against* King Arthur! When the knight is defeated by Parsifal, a young man raised by his mother in the woods but wants to be a knight, Piers and Parsifal decide to stick together. Parsifal has potential, Piers decides, if only he could learn what is and is not knightly, and would stop asking questions all the time.But Piers and Parsifal both have a lot to learn about what it means to be a knight, and what great deeds are truly worth.This is a fantastic retelling of Parsifal and the Grail Quest, full of Morris's unique, signature blend of humor and sorrow, with a healthy dash of wisdom. The characters learn and grow believably, and their suffering is never untouched by hope.

Gerald Morris usually adds a wry, quirky edge to the usual Arthurian legends, but he went into angstier territory for his retelling of Parsifal's legend -- the original Grail quest, long before it was connected to Sir Galahad and so on. "Parsifal's Page" is an initially disappointing experience because it's not terribly funny, but it is an intriguing story from the perspective of... oh, you can tell already.The son of a blacksmith and a former lady-in-waiting to the French court, Piers (calling himself "Pierre") has been prepped by his mother in manners and courtliness, and sweat and grime by his hard-working father. When a strange red knight comes by and offers Piers a road out, he eagerly comes along... only to have red knight is quickly killed off by a strange, naive young man named Parsifal, who is hoping to become a knight.The problem is, Parsifal knows absolutely nothing about knighthood -- or manners, for that matter. He brings along the very confused and embarrassed Piers on his quest to learn manners, fighting (from a mystery woodsman who will be quite familiar to readers of this series), and chivalry (after a disastrous dinner with a noble lady). But disaster strikes when the two stay at a strange, magical castle -- and Parsifal fails to ask "the question."I'll be the first to say: This book is not as funny as Morris' prior work. Oh, there's humor, like the catastrophic dinner with the noble lady, Parsifal sending every defeated foe to a woman Sir Kay insulted, Piers's bizarre and oft-noticed hat, the attack on the castle of an overly-romantic maiden, and so forth.But Morris seems to have stretched his boundaries by exploring some more serious, sober territory n the Arthurian legends, such as Parsifal's self-imposed exile. And while Morris' prose still chugs along at a solid, earnest rate, he events leading up to the return to the castle, and what occurs inside is written with a beauty of words that Morris has not displayed in his prior books. But don't worry, it's not too bleak -- Morris' fondness for his characters is evident everywhere, especially since he revisits the Otherworld and some old friends.Piers is a likeable little guy -- he's pretentious and extremely self-conscious at first, but slowly the layers are stripped away until we see Piers as he is really. Parsifal's evolution from naive and sheltered to sad and haunted to secure and newly mature is painful, but worth the journey. He's absent for a good chunk of the book, allowing us to visit old friends Terence and Gawain. (Who go on a few amusing adventures as well)"Parsifal's Page" is an endearing little fantasy that expands Gerald Morris' writing skills -- he can do funny, but he also do a lot more. Just don't expect the level of humor as before (or after).

Love the mixture of humour and wisdom.