Sword of the Silver Knight by Gertrude Chandler Warner

CHAPTER 1
Stepping Back in Time
    “You’ll never believe it! There’s a knight on horseback riding across the field!” called six-year-old Benny Alden, racing back to his sisters and brother.
    “Benny, you have a great imagination!” said twelve-year-old Jessie.
    The Alden children were on their way to Pleasant Valley Park for a picnic. The park was hidden from view by tall pine trees. But Benny had run ahead of the others. Now he had come back to tell them the exciting news.
    “I’m serious!” Benny said. “There’s a huge tent, and some smaller tents, and knights on horseback!”
    Henry, who was fourteen, raised his eyebrows. “Oh, no! We forgot to bring our armor,” he said with a smile.
    The others laughed. Even Benny had to smile. But as they walked just beyond the pine trees, he pointed down to the field below. “See?” he said.
    The Aldens stopped in surprise. Benny was right! A huge colorful tent, like a circus tent, filled the open field in front of them. Behind it were several smaller tents.
    A man on horseback was riding from one of the smaller tents into the larger one. Just as Benny had said, the man was dressed in shining armor.
    “I feel like we’ve stepped back in time,” said Jessie.
    “Look!” Violet said, pointing to a large sign that said, “Medieval Fair.”
    “What does m-m-med … what does that mean?” Benny asked. He was just learning to read.
    “That was a time, hundreds of years ago, when the world was ruled by kings and queens and there were knights,” Henry explained. “It’s also called the Middle Ages.”
    According to the dates on the sign, the fair was opening that evening. “The fair will be here all week!” cried Violet.
    “Awesome!” Benny said.
    “And look,” Jessie added, pointing to a piece of paper attached to the sign. “They need volunteers.”
    “I want to be a volunteer,” said Benny eagerly. He paused for a moment before asking, “What is a volunteer?”
    “A volunteer is someone who helps with something,” Henry explained.
    “We’re good at helping,” Jessie said.
    “Let’s check it out,” Benny cried, running down the hill toward the main tent.
    The others followed, catching up with Benny at the open doorway to the large tent. The Aldens walked cautiously inside.
    “Wow!” said Benny. All four children stood and stared.
    Inside the tent, long rows of tables were arranged around a center ring. Colorful banners hung down from the ceiling of the tent.
    The children paused for a moment, amazed at what they saw. Men on horseback trotted around the ring. Each man wore armor with a different colored jersey—red, green, blue, gold, or purple—and a matching cape that flowed gracefully behind him. But the Aldens were most impressed by a tall man who wore a silver jersey to match his shining armor.
    “I like the silver knight best,” said Benny, pointing.
    A tall thin woman approached them. She had glasses and short brown hair that curved around her face. Unlike the others in the ring, she was dressed in modern clothes, a light blue skirt with a white blouse.
    “Hello,” she said, smiling at the children. “I’m Hannah Greene. I’m the manager here.”
    “We’re the Aldens,” Henry said. “I’m Henry. These are my sisters, Jessie and Violet, and my brother, Benny.”

    “We live close to here, Ms. Greene,” Jessie explained. “We were planning to have a picnic in the park, but …”
    “But you found out it had been taken over by a medieval fair?” Ms. Greene asked, smiling kindly. “Please, call me Hannah.”
    “This is totally cool!” Benny said with excitement.
    “I’m glad you think so,” said Hannah. “We open tonight, and we’re hoping lots of people will think it’s cool.”
    “What exactly goes on at a medieval fair?” Henry asked.
    “We put on a wonderful show,” Hannah explained. “The knights are warming up for it right now. They joust and do battle, and in the end one knight wins the hand of a