Category: Criticism, Reviews, Research, Awards

Posts on rosemarysutcliff.com, Rosemary Sutcliff’s official website, about Literary Criticism, Reviews and Research about her; and about national and international Awards she received.

The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup was historical novelist Rosemary Sutcliff’s first picture book

Anthony Lawton3 Comments

Original cover of Rosemary Sutcliff's first picture book The Minstrel and the Dragon PupI recall Rosemary Sutcliff, perched at her desk, reading out loud to my enraptured young son drafts of  The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup, which was her first picture book, with illustrations by Emma Chichester-Clark. In the UK , the eminent critic Naomi Lewis often reviewed Rosemary Sutcliff’s books. She praised  The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup as ‘inspired’ and ‘distinguished’. An American critic said it was a ‘fast-paced fairy tale of loss and joyful reunion’ which was ‘beautifully illustrated’. Naomi Lewis wrote:

A young minstrel adopts a lost infant dragon; they become perfect friends. It’s an elegant little creature when full grown, something like a whippet dog with wings and a long curved tail. But when it is stolen, the minstrel starts on a quest to find it. Not only boy and dragon but the whole byegone landscape comes to life in the inspired pictures of this distinguished book.

In the US, Julia Wotipka wrote:

Youngsters with a fondness for dragons will enjoy this beautifully illustrated fantasy. The story is longer than a typical picture book, but a magical winner. One spring, a young, wandering minstrel finds an odd-looking creature hatching from an egg on the beach. The minstrel plays a simple little tune ‘for waking up to’, and a happy little baby dragon emerges. The minstrel names it Lucky, and the two become good friends, traveling from town to town enjoying good music and plenty to eat. When a scheming traveling showman kidnaps Lucky to use in his show, the minstrel is heartbroken. Sutcliff, a masterful storyteller, has created a fast-paced fairy tale of loss and joyful reunion.

Emma Chichester Clark, the illustrator of The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup, studied at the Chelsea School of Art and the Royal College. She was taught by Quentin Blake. Her first book, Listen to This, won the 1988 Mother Goose Award for best newcomer to children’s book illustration. Since then, and including for her work with Rosemary Sutcliff, Emma has since become internationally known. She has illustrated books by Roald Dahl, Peter Dickinson, Kevin Crossley-Holland and Michael Morpurgo. Her own books  include the Blue Kangaroo series. In 2008 she published a version of the fairy tale Hansel and Gretel.

Sources: Observer July 4th 1993 (p62); The Oregonian June 3rd 1993 (pE04).

Terry Pratchett admires Rosemary Sutcliff and her Arthurian novel Sword at Sunset

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When first talking about the impact of his Alzheimer’s disease to The Guardian in March 2008, Terry Pratchett commented that his “fiction – be it for adults or children – isn’t just comic  … You can’t laugh all the time. There’s humour in the darkest places. I mean, The Lord of the Rings is a dark book. There’s an Arthurian darkness – we can fight evil, but ultimately we die.” He recalled Rosemary Sutcliff’s book Sword at Sunset, about Arthurian Britain.

Her marvellous idea was that King Arthur and his warriors were effectively the last Romano-Britons fighting against the dark forces. And you’re going to lose, but you have to go on fighting. Something like that you can add humour to. And that’s what I’ve tried to do.

1963 Arthurian bestseller Sword at Sunset by Rosemary Sutcliff reviewed in New York Timesf Review of the Week:

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US paperback cover of Sword at SunsetOn April 5 in  1987 Patricia O’Conner wrote in The New York Times that: “Rosemary Sutcliff’s historical novel (Sword at Sunset) reinvents King Arthur, and the result, while far from the accepted legend, is ‘an expression of the purest affection for the Arthur of her heart’ ” as Robert Payne had said in The Book Review in 1963. He had written: ”He is a living presence who moves in a brilliantly lit and fantastic landscape only remotely connected with ancient England. And why not?”. Rosemary loved the fact that it went to the top of the UK adult fiction bestseller lists.

The Economist praises Blood Feud by Rosemary Sutcliff

Anthony Lawton1 Comment

Every morning, at the same time, Rosemary Sutcliff would walk though to her study where, leaning on the walking stick she always used,  first she would open her post and then read the Daily Telegraph. I do not think that I ever saw her reading The Economist, nor indeed did I ever see a copy of it in her study in Sussex. But I am sure that she would have read and welcomed its review of Blood Feud in 1976:

The chasm between children’s and adults’ literature narrows to a crack in historical fiction. In Blood Feud it is scarcely visible at all,Read More »

Rosemary Sutcliff obituary (1920-1992) | The Independent newspaper reviews Rosemary Sutcliff life and work

Anthony Lawton1 Comment

Rosemary Sutcliff’s novels ‘set a new standard for children’s historical fiction because of their insight, passion and commitment’ said The Independent in its obituary in 1992 about the famous chidren’s author. Mind you, she wrote for adults too and some  books were marketed as adult historical fiction (like Sword at Sunset which topped the bestseller lists).Read More »