Knights in Shining Armor

by Gail Gibbons

Learn all about medieval knights with favorite nonfiction author and illustrator Gail Gibbons -- perfect for the younger set!

"Children won't want to surrender this book, so buy multiple copies," says Booklist  of this ideal picture book primer on medieval knights. The author covers tournaments, chivalry, and what happened when a bad knight was caught. Legendary knights such as Sir Gawain and the knights of the Round Table are included, as is St.George and the dragon, and Gibbons also discusses present-day knights. With all of the excitement clearly rendered in clean pen and ink and watercolor, there's plenty of fighting, decorative clothing and heraldry, as well as clear labels pointing out the parts of a castle and the names of the armor pieces.

"A shining example of the type of nonfiction that Gibbons does so well." -  School Library Journal

Don't miss these other favorite nonfiction books by Gail
Cowboys and Cowgirls
Recycle!
Tell Me, Tree

Genres: Picture Books, Nonfiction, History, Childrens, Medieval History, Medieval, 2nd Grade

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

From gailgibbons.com: I was born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1944. Even as a little child, I was always busy putting books together. Sometimes I would bind them with yarn to hold the pages together. I've always loved drawing and painting. I was also a very curious child. My parents tell me that I was always asking lots and lots of questions.

Later, I went on to the University of Illinois, where I studied graphic design. Then I moved to New York City, where I got a job doing artwork for television shows. Eventually I was asked to do the artwork for a children's show. While doing that show, some of the children asked me if I had ever thought of doing children's books. My mind immediately recalled how much I enjoyed doing that type of thing when I was a child. So I put an idea for a book together and right away a publisher bought it. That book was called Willy and His Wheel Wagon. Since then, over 170 books that I have written and illustrated have been published. The type of books I write are non-fiction books. This is because I love researching so much. I get to ask lots of questions, just like when I was a kid. I also get to travel and meet lots of interesting people. While doing research for my book Nature's Green Umbrella: Tropical Rain Forests, I traveled to two islands where there are tropical rain forests, Saba and Dominica. I also had a great time writing and illustrating the book. I get a lot of pleasure from doing the type of work I do.

Reviews

[Stacy Renee (LazyDayLit) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gail Gibbons illustrates and explains the age of the Knights in this fun nonfiction picture book!
From castles to feudal systems, this book will help you learn all about the Middle Ages!

We read this to further supplement our knowledge of knights after reading the second Magic Tree House book by Mary Pope Osborne!

[Set · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun informational book about knights and medieval times.

[Philip Schulze · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a simple and easy-to-follow introduction into the medieval times. The proverbial pandora's box was avoided by not delving too deep into the subject and giving just a general background on some key terminology. A fine introductory piece to get young readers into the world but not enough substance to satisfy.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot of really great information about knights and becoming knights in this book, so if you have to read it, you will learn something. The delivery, however, is not very exciting, so you may not want to read it.

[Jackie Spell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good mentor text to teacher young authors how to be a good informational writer. I like that the pictures are labeled since that is what we expect our students to do when they write their pieces.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the illustrations and they helped me understand what I was learning about.

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about knights. Read to the kids.

[Kim Siegenthaler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for the UBN Challenge category 'Book Set in Medieval Times'. This is a fun children's book on Knights during medieval times. Very educational to learn about the middle ages.

[Tracy Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect to read before going to our medieval feast!

[Michael Costa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good book for teaching about knights during the middle ages. The book is very detailed and has a lot of vocabulary specific to the time period. There are a lot of diagrams which could get a bit confusing at times. I could see using this book as a read aloud however it might be difficult for the whole class to see the individual objects the diagrams show. I would try to get a larger copy or project using the document camera. As a work of nonfiction, its a fair book with accurate information that may be used to satisfy some students who are interested in this type of material but it might be difficult for students to read independently. I would pre-read the book and look up pronunciations prior to read aloud.

[Ashlyn Barker-Salyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Detailed book about the Middle Ages and knights. The author also labels some of the items in the illustrations which will help children better understand the vocabulary. Best for strong readers or as a read aloud for a unit study.

[Teri · Rating 3 out of 5]

typical gail gibbons--you learn a lot--but her books are always a little on the dry side.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

N is absolutely in love with this one for some reason. She keeps asking to read it over and over. nice little over view.

[Melanie Swider Wenz]

Nf book in the TC 2nd grade NF unit - used in mini lessons and also as a read aloud

[Kye Jenkins]

This book is very informative about the Middle Ages. It is a good book to introduce students to history and develop their interest in the subject with bright pictures and illustrations that spur the imagination