John the Pupil by David Flusfeder

John the Pupil is a novel by David Flusfeder, his seventh novel. It’s a clever work of historical fiction which takes place in the 13^th century. Brother John is the student of Roger Bacon, and Bacon sends John to Rome to deliver his Opus Majus to Pope Clement IV. Bacon was a very controversial figure in his era, and the Pope was his protector. John is sent along with two of his contemporaries, Brother Bernard and Brother Andrew. Not one of them has been outside his own village before, so they are seeing the world for the first time. The interplay among and the relationship of the three travelers was the essence of this story. The chapters, and the course of time through their travels is marked by one Saint’s holiday after another, which helps capture part of the feeling of living in that era. It took me a few pages to get into the swing of the vocabulary and style of writing, but that too contributed to the experience of being taken back to the era. If you have any interest in life in the Middle Ages, this book is for you. Thanks to Harper Collins for sending this book pre-publication. It should be available in March 2015.