Roland is excited to attend his first joust and watch the knights crashing and smashing. However, he soon learns that jousting isn’t just fun and games. When Roland unexpectedly faces Little Douglas, a page from another castle, Roland must fight his fear and stay on his feet.
Roland Wright: At the Joust has the same loveable characters as the first two books; however, the story focuses less on character development. It mostly revolves around a tournament, so there is more violence than in the previous books. Even though the jousting is described in kid-friendly language, the descriptions are long and show the danger of being a knight.
In the end, Roland is victorious, but he realizes that being hurt or watching your friends hurt is a high price to pay for being a knight. Roland also learns that true friendship is the most important thing of all.
Sexual Content
- None
Violence
- To practice, Roland fights a knight. During the fight there was, “crashing, banging smashing and walloping.” The fight goes on for several pages, but language is kid-friendly, “Roland was hit yet again with the pommel-doinggg!—and found himself lying on the ground. . .”
- One of the knights describes being unhorsed. “The first thing you feel is an enormous thump, like you’ve been hit by a rock thrown from a catapult. You see nothing through your visor but blue sky.”
- There is a tournament where knights joust. During one joust, a knight is injured. “Sir Lucas was thrown up and backward . . . he slowly rolled and twisted a full three yards above the grass. He began to fall, headfirst, crashing his helmet against the tiltline.” Later in the story, it is revealed that Sir Lucas might not live.
- Roland participates in a joust. “He turned to see Little Douglas lying flat on his back with the broken end of Roland’s lance sticking out of the shoulder joint in his armor.”
Drugs and Alcohol
- None
Language
- None
Supernatural
- None
Spiritual Content
- None
