Booktalking Colorado - Full Booktalk Record

Booktalking Colorado Full Record:

	Title:	A Company of Fools
	Author:	Ellis, Deborah
	Date Published:	2002
	Genre:	Historical Fiction
	Grade Level:	6 - 7
	Booktalker:	Kathy Preller

Notes:
I pair this book with a non-fiction book called The Black Death, by Phyllis Corzine. Did you know that Prairie Dogs in Pueblo carry this same disease?

Booktalk:
The Black Death. In the 1300’s it started spreading across Asia and Europe. The first symptoms were egg sized black swellings under the armpits and in the groin. Then, purplish blotches under the skin. Sometimes the swellings burst, oozing blood and pus. A terrible stench accompanied this disease – the victim’s blood, breath, urine and sweat all had a terrible odor. Victims suffered severe pain, and died in 3 to 5 days. 1/3 to ½ of the whole population probably died. One eye-witness in Italy wrote there were so many dead: “huge trenches were excavated in the churchyards, into which new arrivals were placed in their hundreds, stowed tier upon tier…till the trench was filled to the top”. This book (Black Death) is a non-fiction book - that means it's full of true facts about the Black Death. This book (Company of Fools) is a fiction book. It tells a story of a boy raised in a monastery near Paris. He has been in the Abbey most of his life - it's a quiet life of study, prayers and chores. A very routine life; until Micah comes. Micah is an orphan, saved from hanging by Brother Bartholomew. Micah teaches quiet little Henri to have fun. They get into so much mischief. They discover all the hidden tunnels under the abbey. They play a prank on their least favorite monk. They dance on tabletops, for goodness sake! Then the monastery learns that death is marching toward them. The plague landed in the port town, and is slowly spreading into the countryside. The Black Death. True facts and a story of how it affected two young boys.