NICHOLAS AND THE WOOL PACK

An attractively bound and accurately illustrated novel of a young wool merchant's life in fifteenth century England. Nicholas Fetterlock's days are filled with the ins and outs of his father's Cotswold sheep business and its ally- the weaving industry, as well as a threatening mystery to solve. In the midst of plenty-his father's increasing output and reputable position, his betrothal to friendly Cecily Bradshaw that portends a good married life, Nicholas' world is disrupted by the arrival of two Lombard Italians who in nearly successful swindles, bring on Master Fetterlock's ruin. Nicholas, Cecily and a best friend catch them in the nick of time. France comes into the picture, too, as Calais is where the staple or wool merchant's guild meets, and there is over all, the feeling of early renaissance unity.