"I know; I don't care to die either. But when whining mendeth nothing, wherefore whine?"

-Robert Louis Stevenson, The Black Arrow

The Black Arrow: A Tales of the Two Roses (1888) by Robert Louis Stevenson is a classic piece of adventure fiction, set during a civil war in England known as "The War of the Roses" (1455-1487), that tells the story of a swashbuckling, young nobleman who returns from fighting only to discover that an old family friend has murdered his father. When Richard ("Dick") Shelton finds that his uncle and guardian will not help him avenge the crime, he turns to John Amend-All, leader of a mysterious fellowship called the Black Arrow, thus setting in motion a series of threats that challenge Dick to discover his capacity for heroism. Color illustrations by N.C. Wyeth, enhance a spellbinding tale.