Gabriel and the Hour Book

"No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as well as do the stories so admirably told by this author." -Louisville Daily Courier

"The story of a little Norman boy in the time of Louis XII, who went daily to St. Martin's abbey to help the monks who made the wonderful illuminated books....He worked with one of the monks who was the most skillful of them all on an hour book which the king wanted as a gift to his...
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"No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as well as do the stories so admirably told by this author." -Louisville Daily Courier

"The story of a little Norman boy in the time of Louis XII, who went daily to St. Martin's abbey to help the monks who made the wonderful illuminated books....He worked with one of the monks who was the most skillful of them all on an hour book which the king wanted as a gift to his bride....Finally a little prayer to the king which he put into the book brought great fortune." -The New York Times

Brother Stephen has the heart of an artist and wishes to leave the abbey to travel and see the world. However, King Louis has decreed that an "hour book" be made for his bride, Lady Anne, which in turn causes the Abbott to refuse Brother Stephen's request to leave the brotherhood as his illuminations are the most beautiful, and as such, he desires that Brother Stephen should be the one to make the hour book. This decision angers Brother Stephen. Will Brother Stephen stay at the abbey and carry out his task or will he refuse and bring about a ban against him, a serious matter indeed. Or will he choose to stay? And how does Gabriel, the little colour grinder with such a beautiful disposition help him to decide?