Ivanhoe

The action begins in England, which is divided between the Normans, who rule, and the Saxons, who are oppressed. Wilfred of Ivanhoe, a young Saxon knight, is estranged from his father Cedric the Saxon because he supports King Richard I and because he loves Lady Rowena, a noble Saxon heiress whom Cedric wants to marry to another in order to restore Saxon power.

Ivanhoe appears at the great jousting tournament in disguise. By winning a duel against Norman knights, including the evil Templar Brian de Bois-Guilbert, he gains honor and recognition. However, during the tournament, he is seriously wounded.

Rebecca, a beautiful and brave Jewish woman, the daughter of a rich Jewish merchant Isak from York, cares for Ivanhoe and falls in love with him. Ivanhoe, however, remains faithful to Lady Rowena. Rebecca and her father become targets of the Norman knights because of their wealth. Brian de Bois-Guilbert kidnaps Rebecca and imprisons her in a Templar castle, where she is accused of witchcraft.

King Richard, who has returned from the Crusades and is hiding in England, gathers his allies, including Ivanhoe, to free Rebecca and attack the Norman castles. In the spectacular siege of the castle of Front-de-Boeuf, the Allies win, but the problems are not solved.

Rebecca is faced with a mock trial for witchcraft and sentenced to death. Bois-Guilbert, torn between his obsession with Rebecca and his loyalty to the Templar order, agrees to a duel to solve the case. Ivanhoe arrives at the last moment and defeats Bois-Guilbert, who dies under his own emotional burden.

Rebecca and Isak decide to leave England because of the hostility towards the Jews. Ivanhoe marries Rowena, and King Richard restores order and peace to the land, although the divisions between the Saxons and Normans are not completely resolved.

Ivanhoe is one of Walter Scott's most famous novels and is considered a classic work of historical fiction. It has influenced the way the medieval period is portrayed in literature and popular culture, inspiring many adaptations in film, television and theatre.

The youth library brings the entire text of this immortal novel translated by Mate Maras.

The book is accompanied by exciting illustrations from the French edition published in 1880.