Castle Diary: The Journal of Tobias Burgess

Examine how animals are presented and used throughout the text. What do these episodes reveal about medieval attitudes toward utility and the natural world?

Compare the roles and authority of the Reeve and the Constable at Strandborough Castle. How do their differing responsibilities illustrate the distinct administrative demands of managing the manor’s agricultural labor and maintaining its military defense?

Writing and record-keeping appear in several forms across the novel. What role do the physical tools of literacy play in shaping how knowledge and discipline are conveyed in the castle?

Compare and contrast the balance of fiction and fact in this novel to that of Mary Pope Osborne’s The Knight at Dawn, another popular middle-grade “edutainment” book about the medieval era. While Platt’s story follows a medieval protagonist, Osborne’s book is about two contemporary children. How does this authorial decision impact their works?

Citing specific evidence, identify the specific techniques and literary devices that Platt uses to create humor. How do the novel’s comic moments shape Toby’s narrative voice, the other characters’ development, and the story’s overall meaning?

How does Simon function as a model of knighthood for Toby, and in what ways does his mentorship differ from the guidance provided by Baron John?

Examine the portrayal of female characters across different social ranks in the novel. What do their responsibilities reveal about the division of domestic and manual labor inside and outside the castle walls?

In the historical notes concluding the book, Richard Platt points out that castles in 1285 were nearing the end of their effectiveness as military strongholds. How does this context of impending obsolescence affect the portrayal of the martial training and defensive architecture described throughout the diary?