The Ramsay Scallop, by Frances Temple

[sophia_sol]

A children's book from the 90's, this book holds up surprisingly well! It's historical fiction set in the 13th century about two young folks who go on pilgrimage from their village in England to Santiago in Spain.

The style of the book is a little too abrupt for me, switching between short little vignette scenes constantly, and often with different POV's. But it's a really good and solid depiction of the experience of medieval pilgrimage and medieval life, and of the main characters' growth and change on the way. It even manages to include an interlude with a sympathetic muslim character.

Comments

[chestnut_pod]

And what, pray tell, IS the Ramsay Scallop?

[sophia_sol]

hah, a fair question! Ramsay is where the female lead is from, and a scallop shell is the symbol of a pilgrim on the Santiago pilgrimage, so it means the pilgrim from Ramsay.

[chestnut_pod]

Sensible!

[genarti]

Yeah! I remember enjoying this one as a teenager, in that way where it was a little young for me at the age I read it but interesting enough to keep me reading anyway. I reread it a year or two ago, and I agree that the POV switches and so on don't always work but that I still really love the depiction of medieval pilgrimage and medieval society and characters who are fully immersed in their world in a way historical fiction often fails to achieve.

[sophia_sol]

yeah exactly! It's really good at depicting a world, that's different from our world, and I love that!

[skygiants]

oh, I loved this book as a kid (and still do love it tbh) -- it was my first introduction to the proto-versions of a lot of more famous stories such as Patient Griselda, and I loved the ensemble cast and the slow growth of friendship/affection among the party.

[sophia_sol]

Yeah! And I love the way it incorporates all these stories told by people to each other! And the one where the one person starts telling the story properly, and then someone else is like UGH THAT STORY and finishes it off with a brief sum-up to keep the other listeners from having to suffer through the whole story!