Rosemary Sutcliff, writer of children’s fiction, is named by C.C. Humphreys, author of Vlad: The Last Confession, and several historical novels, as his favourite author. Writing for the Sydney Morning Herald in Australia about his favourite books, he listed the classic historical novel Warrior Scarlet and said:

“I could have selected almost any of her novels. She’s who I grew up with and she’s still the best. Confined to a wheelchair she wrote tales of boys and men, often crippled, overcoming the odds to triumph. In this Bronze Age novel, a boy with a withered arm still strives to kill his wolf, to gain the scarlet robe of the warrior. I re-read it recently and, fortunately alone, wept five times at the climax. She describes old worlds faultlessly, in terms only her characters would use or understand. The benchmark for adult or young adult fiction.”

Source: C C Humphreys’s website 

• More posts on the classic children’s book Warrior Scarlet by Rosemary Sutcliff
• A list of all Rosemary Sutcliff’s children’s books and historical fiction books