Spider's Voice (Paperback, 1st Aladdin Paperbacks ed)

"I need a servant who doesn't talk."

Thus speaks Abelard, outspoken and passionate church scholar. So Spider, mute and small, is saved from mutilation and poverty to keep watch as Abelard and his beautiful and gifted pupil Eloise commence one of the greatest love stories of all time. With a quick wit and a talent for listening well, Spider gradually learns to read and write from his famous teachers, and in the end, finds his own unique voice, as well as his place in history as witness to a great love. Set against the backdrop of often frighteningly barbaric, always colorful medieval France, Spider's story is one you'll never forget.