The Riddle and the Knight
In Search of Sir John Mandeville, the World's Greatest Traveler
ISBN10: 031242129X
ISBN13: 9780312421298
Trade Paperback
240 Pages
$20.00
CA$21.99
Giles Milton's first book is the fascinating account of the legend of Sir John Mandeville, a long-forgotten knight who was once the most celebrated writer in medieval Europe. In 1322, Mandeville left England to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Thirty-four years later he returned, claiming not only to have visited the Holy Land but also to have travelled to India, China, Tibet, Java, and Sumatra. His subsequent book detailing the events of his voyage—The Travels—became a beacon that lit the way for the great expeditions of the Renaissance, and his exploits and adventures provided inspiration for writers such as Shakespeare, Coleridge, and Swift.
Yet by the nineteenth century, Mandeville was all but ignored by scholars; his descriptions of fantastic monsters and strange peoples were discredited; and The Travels was dismissed as a work of fevered imagination. Intrigued by the man who was once regarded as the father of English literature, Giles Milton set off in the footsteps of Sir John Mandeville in order to test his amazing claims and to attempt to solve the riddle of the knight.
The Riddle and the Knight is "a brilliant and original piece of detective work which reveals, after more than six centuries, the astonishing truth about Sir John Mandeville" (The Mail on Sunday) and restores him to his rightful place in the history of literature and exploration.
Reviews
Praise for The Riddle and the Knight
"[Milton] demonstrate[s] his sharp eye for the significant detail or event . . . Engaging."—The New York Times Book Review
"Pioneer traveller or shameless charlatan, Sir John Mandeville had a huge influence both on the history of exploration and on all subsequent English literature. Here at last is a book which, while always readable and amusing, takes Sir John Mandeville as seriously as he deserves."—John Julius Norwich
"In an ambitious attempt to unravel both the personal and the professional mystery of Sir John's life, Milton sets off to follow Mandeville's original route, immersing himself in the sights, sounds, and colors of the cities and cultures he documented, resulting in a delightful travelogue as well as a long-overdue resurrection of one of the most intriguing figures in the history of geographical exploration."—Margaret Flanagan, Booklist (starred review)
"Count on author Giles Milton to be witty, entertaining, and intellectually stimulating . . . Brilliant."—The Cleveland Plain Dealer
"Erudite, witty, and adventurous."—The Mail on Sunday
"A rare and excellent work that combines scholarship with intrigue, Milton's book may induce that wonderful swoon usually contracted after long hours researching libraries and labyrinths of history."—Publishers Weekly
Reviews from Goodreads
BOOK EXCERPTS
Read an Excerpt
THE RIDDLE AND THE KNIGHT
1
The Inscription
I remember a very old man named Jordan telling me much of Sir John Mandeville when I was a little boy ... He didn't talk so much about his life as about the place of his...