Rosemary Sutcliff was an internationally renowned writer of historical novels, for children, young adults and adults. She also wrote stories for children. This category compiles the posts on this blog by title.
Like the sudden opening of a cavern in his head, reality burnt upon Phaedrus, and in that ice-bright splinter of time he understood at last that this was a fight to the death, that he was fighting, not his comrade Vortimax, whom he had fought scores and hundreds of times before, but death, red-rending death such as the stag’s had been, and the hooks of the mercuries in the dark alleyway.
(from The Mark of the Horse Lord by Rosemary Sutcliff )
Amazon are selling Rosemary Sutcliff‘s classic historical novel, The Eagle of the Ninth, for the Kindle in the UK for 99p! In the US it is $1.54! This classic of children’s literature is still relevant and readable today, and is a bargain for all you new Kindle owners who can be tempted by historical fiction (or who saw the movie The Eagle earlier this year). On the Amazon site author Ben Kane gave a brief review.
… The Eagle of the Ninth was one of the first historical fiction books I can remember reading as a child, and it instilled in me a great love of all things Roman. When wanting to change career from that of a veterinarian to a writer, Eagle of the Ninth helped inspire me to write Roman fiction. Quite simply, this, in my opinion, is one of the best historical fiction books ever written. Suitable for all ages from 8 or so upwards, it is a stirring read about the pursuit of honour in the face of great danger. Thoroughly recommended.
The Guardian newspaper has presented the aggregate information on physical book sales in Britain in 2011.
Three already elderly Stieg Larsson thrillers topped last year’s all-year bestsellers table, followed by Jamie’s 30-Minute Meals (the Christmas No 1) and Guinness World Records, with One Day and The Help just outside the top 10. Glance at 2011’s chart, and you could be forgiven for wondering if 12 months have really passed.
For this was a year when old books saw off new ones, and paperbacks sent hardbacks packing. The same seven titles merely change places, with Larsson’s musty trio and David Nicholls’s and Kathryn Stockett’s two-year-old novels all given renewed sales muscle by movie versions.
Interestingly – to me – the combined sales (some 23,500 books) of the two versions of Rosemary Sutcliff‘s 1950s historical novel The Eagle of the Ninth, whilst way down in the full charts, put her in the top twenty (by volume) of the historical and mythological fiction category. On top of that about her publisher Oxford University Press sold about 6,700 copies of The Eagle of the Ninth Chronicles (which also includes The Silver Branch and The Lantern Bearers). Highest seller by volume in historical fiction was Philippa Gregory’s The Red Queen, with nearly 200,000! And in there in the top ten is Rosemary Sutcliff fan Ben Kane. Congratulations!
In children’s fiction, which embraces The Wimpy Kids books as well as J K Rowling, Enid Blyton and Alex Scarrow, (to highlight some very different genres of children’s book), such a volume of sales only allows Rosemary to creep in to the top hundred in about 90th place for The Eagle of the Ninth (although I have not looked to see if there are any duplicate versions of the same title in those above or below her ‘position’).
Historical Fiction Top Twenty
| Title | Author | Volume | Binding |
| The Red Queen | Philippa Gregory | 193,263 | Paperback |
| My Last Duchess | Daisy Goodwin | 108,176 | Paperback |
| Death of Kings | Bernard Cornwell | 64,876 | Hardback |
| The Confession of Katherine Howard | Suzannah Dunn | 63,259 | Paperback |
| Empire of Silver | Conn Iggulden | 62,737 | Paperback |
| the Lady of the Rivers | Philippa Gregory | 51,994 | Hardback |
| The Road to Rome: Forgotten Legion Chronicles | Ben Kane | 50,137 | Paperback |
| The White Queen | Philippa Gregory | 46,840 | Paperback |
| The Captive Queen | Alison Weir | 42,783 | Paperback |
| Heresy | S. J. Parris | 42,029 | Paperback |
| Insurrection | Robyn Young | 38,654 | Paperback |
| Wolf Hall | Hilary Mantel | 35,516 | Paperback |
| Conqueror | Conn Iggulden | 33,909 | Hardback |
| Rome: The Emperor’s Spy | M. C. Scott | 26,650 | Paperback |
| Revelation:Shardlake | C. J. Sansom | 25,711 | Paperback |
| Praetorian | Simon Scarrow | 24,282 | Hardback |
| Secrets of the Tudor Court | Darcey Bonnette | 24,020 | Paperback |
| The Sisters Brothers | Patrick deWitt | 23,740 | Paperback |
| The Eagle of the Ninth | Rosemary Sutcliff | 23,397 | Paperback |
Source: Bestselling books of 2011 – Commentary | Books | The Guardian
Click here for spreadsheet of full Guardian-Nielsen data, if you want to play …
.
Lovel, the crippled hero of Rosemary Sutcliff‘s The Witch’s Brat, is driven from his village in a shower of stones after his grandmother’s death. (The) novel (is) … crammed with careful period detail and research, the painstaking catalogues of herb-lore brought grippingly to life by the characters to whom they bring such danger.
Novela histórica de la saga que Sutcliff escribió sobre el tiempo de dominación romana de Britania. El protagonista vuelve a ser un descendiente de la familia de los Aquila: Un joven oficial que cae en desgracia por una decisión desacertada y es enviado como consecuencia a la frontera escocesa, al mando de unas tropas un tanto asilvestradas.
La trama es bastante sencilla y equilibrada. La autora hace ver que la actuación de los individuos repercute en los grupos sociales, pero también los personajes se ven arrastrados por problemas sociales (y los que eran amigos, por ejemplo, pasan a enfrentarse).
Para chicos (protagonista masculino, aventuras militares, virtudes castrenses…). Me ha gustado bastante. 4/5.
Más reseñas de la saga en este blog aquí, aquí, aquí y aquí. (¡Me ha dado fuerte, eh!)
via Villa Molina: Los lobos de la frontera (1980), de Rosemary Sutcliff.
Translation from Google of this blogpost:
Historical novel of the saga that Sutcliff wrote about the time of Roman occupation of Britain. The protagonist is again a descendant of the family of Aquila: A young officer who falls from grace by a misguided decision and sent as a result of the Scottish border, troops commanded by a somewhat feral. The plot is fairly simple and balanced. The author shows that the impact performance of individuals in social groups, but the characters are drawn by social problems (and they were friends, for example, are to face). For boys (male lead, military adventures, military virtues …). I liked a lot. 4 / 5. More reviews of the series on this blog here, here, here and here. (I have it bad, eh!)
ROSEMARY SUTCLIFF (1920-92) 