Otto of the Silver Hand by Howard Pyle*

This book started a little slow for us, but by the second chapter we were caught up in the story.  Otto's mother dies while giving birth to him and his robber baron father drops him off with Abbott Otto of St. Michaelsburg.  He grows up in the monastery,  sheltered from the feuds occurring in Medieval Germany.  When his father comes to collect him, Otto has no idea how quickly and forcefully the world's evil will come upon him.
I loved the illustrations.
I did not enjoy reading the "thous", "thees", "thys"!  Whenever the characters used Old English/these words, I switched the words to modern English. 
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
Warning: violence, evil men