An unreliable narrator tells the story of a knight who fights a dragon but seems to forget key details along the way.

This is a very silly book that gets at the heart of storytelling. The simple tale of a knight's quest is well known, but it is presented in fits and starts as the narrator tries to recall the correct version of events and characters. Because it plays around with the traditional story arc, this book is best for older elementary school-age children. The illustrations are cartoonish but it works with this story and helps bring it to life.

I could see this being used in a classroom setting for a unit on fairy tales as a fun twist on the genre alongside other fractured fairy tales such as David Wiesner's The Three Pigs and Mo Willems's Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs. ( )

A knight errant sets out on a quest in this humorous picture-book send-up of the classic tales of chivalry, finding that the story is continually changing all around him. He starts out on a horse, but is soon striding toward destiny - "Once upon an olden day / A knight in armor rode away. / Then again... / he had no horse. / Did I say "rode"? / He strode of course." - eventually fighting a dragon (or is it a cat?) with his sandwich (I mean, sword!). Both combatants die on the battlefield... or do they?

I chuckled aloud on more than one occasion while reading Michelle Robinson's cleverly rhyming tale, with its stops and starts, corrections and retractions, and overall sense of fun. Fred Blunt's artwork in The Forgetful Knight reminded me a bit of the work of such illustrators as Quentin Blake and Tony Ross, and captures the madcap antics of the text wonderfully. I particularly liked his cat (of course), and his dragon. Recommended to anyone looking for fun new takes on the old quest-type tale, or for stories involving knights, dragons, and imaginative play. ( )

Michelle Robinson is back with another silly story, paired up with another kooky illustrator.

On a lovely clear day, a brave knight rides off on his horse...no, that's not right, he didn't have a horse. He did have a sandwich. No, I mean a sword. He had to fight....something. What was it? Oh, yeah, a dragon. Worst of all its offences, it has eaten the knight's best friend, Sir Clopalot! He can't quite remember what Sir Clopalot looked like, but he definitely misses him....

After much confusion and wackiness, the knight finally remember what really happened, gets his friend back, and all ends happily.

Blunt's colored pencil illustrations are reminiscent of Quentin Blake's messy and funny scrawls, with untidy hair, bulgy eyes, and hasty swirls denoting scales, smoke, and more. The dragon looks both cool and bored as he waits for the knight to get his act together and the fleeing townsfolk, shown in medieval disarray in the vet's office, are hilarious.

Verdict: If you're planning any fractured fairy tale storytimes or programs, or just looking for some silly reads, make sure to add this one to your list.

ISBN: 9780803740679; Published 2016 by Dial/Penguin; Review copy provided by publisher; Donated to the library