The Adventures of Sir Balin the Ill-Fated

Gr 3-5—In this addition to the series, the Old Woman of the Mountain ("Which mountain?…It matters not") arrives to tell the future of the newborn Balin. Unfortunately, for every bit of good in her prediction ("He shall be the noblest knight in England!"), there is an equal bit of calamity ("His greatness will bring misfortune on all his companions!"). Flash forward 20 years and King Arthur is set to decide the fate of the same Sir Balin of Northumberland, who has been imprisoned for killing another knight. Suddenly Balin seizes the opportunity to pull an enchanted sword from its scabbard, which will make him the "noblest knight in England." Sound familiar? Thus Arthur frees him to go pursue his adventures, which are prophesied to result in nothing but trouble, and so they do. Accompanied at various times by his brother Sir Balan the Doughty and Lady Annalise, the Questing Lady, Sir Balin strives to avoid bringing bad luck to King Arthur, but isn't above directing his attention toward miscreants who deserve a dose of his ill fate. Brush and ink illustrations have a comic appeal that adds to the fun. With lots of humor, wordplay, and numerous twists and turns, Morris cleverly tackles each piece of the Old Woman's prophecy until every loose end is neatly resolved.—Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library