Tag: children’s literature

Rosemary Sutcliff won The Carnegie Medal for historical novel The Lantern Bearers in 1959

Anthony LawtonLeave a comment

Rosemary Sutcliff’s historical novels The Eagle of the Ninth, The Silver Branch, and The Lantern Bearers are sometimes called a trilogy. Rosemary Sutcliff won the Library Association Carnegie Medal for The Lantern Bearers in 1959. The Medal is awarded every year in the UK to the writer of an outstanding book for children. The Library Association started the prize in 1936, in memory of the Scottish-born philanthropist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919), a self-made industrialist who made his fortune in steel in the USA. His experience of using a library as a child led him to resolve that “if ever wealth came to me that it should be used to establish free libraries”. He established more than 2800 libraries across the English speaking world and, by the time of his death, over half the library authorities in Great Britain had Carnegie libraries.

First awarded to Arthur Ransome for Pigeon Post, the medal is now awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals. The winner receives a golden medal and some £500 worth of books to donate to a library of their choice. Rosemary Sutcliff also:

Rosemary Sutcliff still top of Amazon classic children’s books bestseller list | Tuesday 29th March

Anthony Lawton1 Comment

And in the main “Authors and Illustrators” section (of children’s books), The Eagle of the Ninth Kindle eBook is No 3, The paperback edition is No 6, and The Eagle of the Ninth Chronicles (which includes The Silver Branch, and The Lantern Bearers also) is No 10. Not bad eh!  And ahead of Michael Morpungo’s Warhorse – which intriguingly sells more in book form than as an eBook. (I wonder what actual numbers these all involve?)

Writer Amanda Craig on historical novelist and children’s writer Rosemary Sutcliff

Anthony Lawton4 Comments

Interview here in The Times newspaper with your blog’s author – about Rosemary Sutcliff, the book The Eagle of the Ninth and the film The Eagle.

Rosemary Sutcliff inspired and influenced | Author Ben Kane

Anthony Lawton2 Comments

Hardback cover of Ben Kane's The Silver EagleBen Kane, himself now an acclaimed author of Roman novels, has posted on his own website an homage to Rosemary Sutcliff which concludes:

I wasn’t made aware of quite how deep The Eagle of the Ninth had sent roots into my mind until, at the age of 31 and more than twenty years after I’d read the book, I first set my eyes on the incredible structure that is Hadrian’s Wall. Read More »

Rosemary Sutcliff is unequaled in children’s historical fiction | Guardian books blog

Anthony Lawton2 Comments

The writing of Rosemary Sutcliff is loved by Imogen Russell Williams, director of Have Your Cake Theatre – a fringe theatre company. Her areas of ‘anorak expertise’ (according to the Guardian website) include ‘children’s books, classical tragedy and Golden Age crime fiction’. No wonder that for her:

… the nonpareil of children’s historical fiction remains Rosemary Sutcliff, whose books about Bronze Age Britain (Warrior Scarlet; Sun Horse, Moon Horse) and Roman Britain, particularly The Eagle of the Ninth and The Lantern Bearers, were intensely memorable to me as a child and part of the reason I eventually chose to study classics at university. Read More »