Summary Of Crispin: The Cross Of Lead

The novel, Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi, regards Crispin, a once un-named boy previously known as “Asta’s son.” He has been dealing with the death of his father, Lord Furnival and recently, his mother, Asta. Solitary, vulnerable and impotent, he takes refuge in a priest and family-friend, Father Quinel. There, he instructs the boy to leave his town, Stromford, and he urges him to hide from the search parties that are out to kill him. If he is able to find his way to a town or city and stay for a year and a day, he can hero, on a quest.

In the beginning of the novel, Crispin is a relatively feeble individual. He is skittish, shy and fearful- remaining quiet and doesn’t say anything even when it isn’t convenient for him. He later becomes

Evidently, he becomes a hero. Crispin has changed substantially since the beginning of the novel. He seems significantly more jovial and self-assured in the things he does. For example, when he learned how to play a song perfectly on the recorder, he was so contented. As stated by Crispin, “The more I realized this, the less tense I became. Gradually I found my way with tongue, fingers, and breath. Before the day was half done, I managed to pipe out his simple song. “There. You’ve done it,” [Bear] cried out when first I did. “Tell me that you didn’t hear it, too.” No one was more amazed than me. To think that I, with my breath, could make a song thrilled me deeply. I wanted to play it over and over again.” This emphasizes that he thought no one was more amazed than he was and it thrilled him deeply that he could play on the recorder. I know I feel great when I learn something new, so I can only imagine how Crispin, who had absolutely no faith in himself at all, felt when he learned how to do new things. In addition, since Crispin knows more of his family background, it made him think of himself differently. Furthermore, I believe Bear caused most of the changes, as Crispin grew stronger, learned to stand up for himself and he has a better self-esteem. Additionally, I think what also changed him was that he was finally able to see what good amounts of money looks like.