Is your book club reading Spindle and Dagger? Here’s a one-page roundup of discussion questions to get you started!
Here are some resources to help readers who are curious to learn more about the world of Spindle and Dagger:
Medieval Overview
- Life in medieval Britain – If your students need a refresher on what life was like in the middle ages, this video covers the bases pretty well.
- The Middle Ages – A summary from the BBC
- Interactive Middle Ages – Illustrated timeline describing various aspects of medieval history and culture
- Medieval English Society – A brief, clear outline from a history professor
The Kingdoms of Wales
- The Kingdoms of Wales – An illustrated timeline of the early middle ages in Wales, with forays into England
- The Lost Kingdoms of Wales – Summaries of each kingdom, when it flourished, and some of its prominent leaders
- A History of Wales – The Coming of the Normans – Parts 1 and 2 provide a thoughtful overview of the period in question
- Early Medieval Wales – A thorough overview of the time period via CastleWales
- Gatehouse Gazetteer – A searchable database where folks can learn more about individual forts and manor houses in Spindle and Dagger
- Heritage EU (Wales) – An alphabetical list of forts and castles that includes images and summaries
Historical Figures
Owain ap Cadwgan
- via the Dictionary of Welsh Biography
- via Ancient Wales Studies (1 and 2)
Nest
- Kari Maund’s Princess Nest (History Press, 2007)
- via the Dictionary of Welsh biography
- via Pembroke Story
- via the University of Notre Dame (Parts 1 and 2)
Also, check out “Whatever Happened To…”
Medieval Life and Culture
- Spinning with a drop spindle (5:09) – Elen spends a lot of time spinning. Here, you can watch how she did it.
- Women in the middle ages – An illustrated overview of how women of different classes spent their time
- Domestic objects & housekeeping – Physical descriptions and historical context for a number of household objects (for instance, beds, pallets, and rushlight)
- Table manners – A translation of the “Little Children’s Little Book,” a fifteenth-century courtesy text intended to help children learn to behave
Saints
- Saints and sanctity in the middle ages – an overview of how medieval people viewed saints
- Saints in medieval Wales – a resource that is growing into a searchable database