Customer Reviews

Otto of the Silver Hand

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Children and adults will love this wonderful book about honor and virtue in the Middle Ages. Otto, the young protagonist of the novel, proves that evil begets evil and good begets honor -- and above all that CHARACTER DOES MATTER. The novel, first published in 1888 by one of America's finest authors/illustrators is inspiring and exciting. A great book to read aloud to children.

I have read - Otto of the Silver Hand - two times. Once to myself and then to my three oldest children ages 9,8,6. This book is as captivating and beautiful as a knight in shining armor tale can be. It's a tale of love, courage, good and evil. The love begins between husband and wife with as much fervor and honesty as is felt in the movie "Braveheart" (Mel Gibson). Conrad, the baron of the Castle Drakenhausen whose love is so great for the Baroness Matilda, takes their son Otto to the "White Cross on the Hill" soon after his birth. There his good, holy and wise Uncle Otto (Abbot Otto) resides. You see, Baroness Matilda has died at Otto's birth and Baron Conrad knows his cold castle and his bitter feudal world are not suited for the raising of his child. Young Otto developes a pure, simple and docile attitude in the 12 years he lives at the monastery. His father comes to reclaim him at this point and here the story begins to unfold.

This is so beautifully written! It's wonderfully suspenceful (how Otto escapes from his cold, dark dungeon when he is near death; how his father gives his life in the end for that of his son and the "faithful few" who remained with him till the bitter end. I am reminded of a thought which often passes through my mind - No greater love has man than he who lays down his life for another-

We do have one compliant about the telling of this tale...we wish there would have been more to the ending. It ended too abruptly in our opinion. We wanted more. However, we were left for many days reliving the book over and over in our thoughts and conversations. The spirit of great love from a man to his wife, a father to his son was refreshing. The story was indeed uplifting to the mind, heart and soul of myself and my children. What better tale to tell...to teach love in its sometimes harsh reality!! Death because of love!!

This book is too beautiful to miss!! (if you are interested in knights, etc.) Any critique to the contrary shows a lack of depth of the critic. Perhaps only those with the greatest potential to love can see the beauty of this tale.

As an elementary and junior high school teacher, I have read and re-read hundreds of the best children's books, scores of them aloud to my classes. In my opinion "Otto of the Silver Hand" is the most perfect book ever written for children. The story is engaging and inspiring, the flavor of the middle ages comes through in the language, and the illustrations are classic. This is a book no 9 to 14-year-old child should miss, and it is a rewarding read also for any thoughtful adult who has an interest in history or literature.

I first read Otto of the Silver Hand as a child and was completely intrigued by its medieval feel and simple, yet poetic, grandeur. I can honestly say that it is one reason that I went on to become a medievalist. As an adult, I've enjoyed it even more. Pyle's evocative illustrations add enormously to the mood and beauty of the work. I strongly recommend it for people of all ages and particularly as a good book to read aloud to children.

My two boys (11 and 7) both were begging for more of this story! And that even though the language is not easy to understand (a lot of Old English). We really enjoyed reading it.

Otto of the Silver Hand, by Howard Pyle has appeared in many editions, with illustrations by the author The illustrations are more than half the value of the book; the book IS the text WITH the illustrations. I have given away dozens of copies of it to children and adults. I selected this one from Amazon because it is being newly published, never conceiving that it wouldn't include the illustrations; I can't believe that a publisher can be so terribly insensitive as to produce this book. I am returning it.

Howard Pyle is one of my favorite authors, as he has splendid archaic English prose and beautful illustrations in all of his books. Otto of the Silver Hand is no exception, and is rather a devation from his normal books. Unlike Robin Hood and His Merry Men, his King Arthur books, or Men in Iron, this book has few battle scenes and is mostly about character development and the setting of the Middle Ages. It tells the story of Otto, the young son of a robber baron, who grows up in a monestary and is thrust out into the world. He finds it a cruel place, and much evil comes to him. Meanwhile, Pyle is through the whole book trying to show that strength of character is stronger than strength of sword, and that the silver hand is more desirable than the iron fist. It is a wonderful book, with wonderful illustrations by Pyle himself. I definitely recommend this, as well as Pyle other works.

Overall grade: A.

Other copies have wonderful illustrations done by the author but this printing looks like it was done on a semi-pro press and there's none of the great illustrations by author Howard Pyle (we checked out a Dover edition from the library before we ordered this and our kids loved how the pictures dramatized the story as it unfolded).

So, if you order the book that has the orange cover with the cheap looking illustration of a boy knight on a horse on the front, you are getting a quick print job with no illustrations! In our case, the cutting of the paper is off at the bottom as well. Not even a decent rectangle - instead of cutting it at a 90 degree angle, they thought 85-ish would be good. The result is what I imagine the instant book printing machines to look like.

We could live with the poor cutting job if the illustrations were there so alas!, buy with that warning or better look for the Dover edition with the blueish cover of the monk and the boy on the horse.

Great story either way!

Howard Pyle (1853-1911) was a famous artist, storyteller, and teacher. His was a strong influence on the Brandywine Group of artists. He taught at Drexel Institute in Philadelphia (now Drexel University), and his pupils included Maxfield Parrish and N. C. Wyeth. The latter's son, Andrew Wyeth, was influence by Pyle's "precision and elegance of line." The illustrations in Otto of the Silver Hand show these characteristics in 25 full page illustrations plus headpiece and tailpiece drawings for each of the 14 chapters. The exciting story of Otto concerns the growth of a boy living in the Middle Ages, who becomes advisor to a King, and practices the motto, "Better a silver hand than an iron hand."

REVIEWED BY: Wayne Walker

This book is set in German Baron States of the Middle Ages during the reign of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph. However, I was unable to tell whether it was the time of Rudolph I (1273-1291) or Rudolph II (1576-1612). At first I thought that it might be the latter, but after reading the book I decided that it could be the former. Baron Conrad Vuelph of Castle Drachenhausen is one of the robber barons of medieval Germany who makes his living robbing the merchants who were passing through the forests near his land. For years, his family has been in a blood feud with that of Baron Frederick Roderburg from the nearby Castle Trutz-Drachen.

One day, Baron Conrad takes his men out to raid a caravan. His wife, Baroness Mathilda, pleads with him not to do it but give up stealing from others. He almost listens but finally goes. Unfortunately, the merchants had asked for safety from Baron Frederick who gives Conrad what appears to be a mortal wound. When he is brought home for dead and seen by his wife, she faints and a little later, after giving birth to their child whom she names Otto after her brother, dies from the shock. But Conrad is not dead. After he recovers, he takes the child to the monastery of the White Cross at St. Michaelsburg, under the care of Abbott Otto, his brother-in-law, where the child spends the next twelve years.

In the meantime, Conrad takes his revenge by killing Frederick. Then, when little Otto is twelve, his father comes to take him home and raise him to be his successor. However, when his father leaves to swear allegiance to the new Emperor Rudolph, Frederick's son, Baron Henry, attacks the castle and kidnaps Otto, cutting off his right hand so that he could never wield a sword against a Roderburg, to get back at Conrad. However, Henry's daughter Pauline falls in love with Otto and helps him escape. But Henry and his men give chase. Will he find safety? And, though fitted with a silver hand to replace the one he lost in captivity, will he grow up to continue the fighting or choose a different life?

While this book was originally written in 1888 about a time several hundreds of years before, it is a timeless story that still has appeal for those who enjoy reading about the Middle Ages. Like those by G. A. Henty, Pyle's books emphasize the development of character in spite of difficult circumstances. The courage of the stern but loving father which allows Otto's safe return to the monks who place him under the emperor's protection and the loyalty of Conrad's men in risking their lives to help him save the boy are both very touching. Other editions of the book exist, but the one from Dover Publications includes the 55 original illustrations by the author. We did this as a family read aloud, and everyone liked it.