Sir Dana: A Knight

The age of chivalry is always of interest to children. The story of Sir Dana, as told by his trusty armor, is a lively account of the life of a loyal though fictitious knight. When a class of children are visiting the medieval room of a museum, a guard tells them that if they press the correct button the knight's armor will answer their questions. At first things get off to a rough startthe armor is speaking 14th century English. But once it is fine-tuned, it provides informative, interesting answers to such questions as ``Why did Sir Dana become a knight,'' ``Were knights rich?'' and ``Did they have pets in medieval times?'' Using humorous illustrations (many containing ballooned asides) and color-coded foot notes, Fradon, a cartoonist for the New Yorker , has created an imaginative approach that imparts much information about knights and the middle ages. Ages 8-12. (Oct.)