A MEDIEVAL CATHEDRAL

The author of A Medieval Castle, also in the ``Inside Story'' series, presents the ingenious, devoted, and indefatigable builders who perfected the medieval cathedral as a stone prayer to God and a place of community pride. Though again treading on the heels of David Macaulay, Macdonald and James hold their own, pointing out the religious significance of a bishop's seat, describing pilgrims' routes to other cathedrals, depicting the daily life of both workers and the religious community, and showing the variety of arts and crafts necessary to construction. In James's precisely detailed color illustrations, tiny figures climb dizzying heights of scaffolding to perform their tasks; the lofty elevation and difficulties of working with massive stone blocks on flimsy scaffolds should ignite interest in young folks. A few annoying picture captions don't parallel the text (e.g., ``St. James'' becomes ``Santiago''); still, a wealth of information is provided here in attractive style. ``Cathedral Facts and Building Styles'' are appended; glossary; index. (Nonfiction. 10+)