Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman

 

Catherine, Called Birdy

Bibliography

Cushman, Karen.  1994.  Catherine, Called Birdy. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780395681862.

Plot Summary

This book, written in the form of diary entries, gives us a glimpse into the life of 12 year old Catherine, the daughter of a country knight, Set in 1290, she is forced to write in a journal for her brother Edward, in hopes that it would make her more mature.  She is reluctant at first, but eventually writes almost daily about the woes of being a young lady who must train to be a wife.  She despises sewing, spinning, and embroidery and would rather be with her friend Perkins tending the goats.  She also argues frequently with her father, who makes several attempts to wed her.  She manages to turn away all the suitors except for Murgaw, who she calls “Shaggy Beard.”  She fights with her father after the betrothal and even runs away from home, but she finally realizes she must fulfil her duties that are expected of a knight’s daughter.  The turning point came when she needed the silver from Shaggy Beard’s betrothal gifts to save the life of a trained bear who was going to be sent to certain death in a dog fight.  Once she realized she can still be herself even after being married, in a great stroke of luck (for her) Shaggy Beard is killed in a fight, and she marries his son instead.

Critical Analysis

This book included detailed description of life in 1290, including the daily menu, the chores expected of ladies, and the medical treatments used at the time.  There were also many details about Catherine’s home, such as having to clean the rushes on the floor, having to share a bed with her nanny and her room with visiting girls, how it got so cold in the winter that water in their rooms froze, and how flea-infested the rooms were in the summer.

Birds are symbolic throughout the book; Catherine is called “Little Bird” often, she has a bird collection (of which she frees most of the birds before she is to wed Shaggy Beard), and the visiting King’s sister tells her she is lucky to have wings, but must learn how to use them, meaning she must know when to protest and when to follow her duty.  Catherine finally transitions out of childhood when she sacrifices her happiness to save the bear, and she realizes that “I am who I am wherever I am,” and even if she is married to an unwanted husband, she is still herself.

Review Excerpts

1995 John Newberry Medal Honor

1995 Golden Kite Award Fiction Winner

Horn Book Guide 9/1/1994  “Her diary of the year 1290 provides a revealing, amusing, and vivid picture of both Catherine's thoughts and medieval life.”

Voice of Youth Advocates 6/1/1994, Rebecca Barnhouse “The narrative style of her journal is amusing and believable. Cushman's knowledge of life in the Middle Ages is broad; readers will not get a misty view of a pleasant fantasy-land. Instead, the details will remind them of the harshness of life in a period that had few creature comforts and only the most rudimentary understanding of medicine.”

Connections

Readers may also enjoy Castle Diary: The Journal of Tobias Burgess, Page by Richard Platt ISBN 9780763621643 or A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver by E.L. Konigsburg ISBN 9780689301117