Idris and the Knights. Book III.

Idris and the Knights is a book to make young people think about race and gender roles. It has a female hero making her way into unfamiliar surroundings where she meets and interacts with several different people with radically different personalities and views about the world. It is set in the fictional kingdom of Alonia; a mountainous region of medieval Europe where old ideas are strictly adhered to and new ones are viewed with suspicion.

The entire tale recounts the ups and downs of Idris’ battle to become a knight; it is split into three parts. Each book comes as a PDF document which can be displayed on an interactive board so that it can be used as a class reader or printed off to be read to the class. Each book also has a Powerpoint presentation that contains open ended questions for each chapter. This is included in the hope that discussion will show that the world is not a place where black and white answers are usual, especially when dealing with interpersonal relationships or personal perspectives when dealing with tricky situations.

Book III. Sir Cular, Sir Ne’er-do-well & Sir Candy-floss. This final book finds Idris at the end of her time with Sir Edward. She is unhappy about this because her next tutor with be the disgusting knight, Sir Cular. Just before this happens, Idris witnesses Sir Beaufort challenging Sir Cular, to mortal combat. He does this to bring to an end the years of constant bullying at Cular’s hands. The (rather unconventional) combat takes place and Cular loses. However, due to his overwhelming arrogance and deluded feelings of superiority Sir Cular is banished from the kingdom. Idris is then transferred to the care of Sir Ne’er-do-well who teaches her about history and tactics. Her time with this knight passes quickly, but not before Idris has learned how to make scale models of working war machines. The last knight to tutor her is Sir Candy-floss. The story works towards a climax when Sir Candy-floss and Idris accidentally discover that Sir Cular has secretly returned to Alonia so that he can take the castle and therefore the kingdom, by storm. Once the plan is discovered the whole castle works together to repel the attack and Sir Cular comes to a sticky end. Thanks to the part she played in repulsing the foe, Idris is knighted and become the first female Knight in Alonia…or maybe not!