By Rosemary Sutcliff (author) , Isabel Greenberg (illustrator)
"An imaginative girl finds thrilling adventures close to home in this glorious new edition of a Tudor-set classic"
Hardback In Stock £19.99 £17.99
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What a treat it is for a Rosemary Sutcliff treasure to be newly presented to the world, and in a beautiful package that befits the story’s historic charms and thrills, with charming chapter heading illustrations by Isabel Greenberg, and an introduction by Lara Maiklem, the acclaimed author of Mudlarking . This Manderley Press edition of The Armourer’s House will make a glorious gift for fans of historic fiction who relish intrigue and atmosphere, and comes highly recommended for readers who love Eva Ibbotson’s writing, and contemporary writers like Celia Rees and Katherine Rundell .
First published in 1951, The Armourer’s House is set in London during the reign of Henry VIII, and rich in the engaging period detail Sutcliff is renowned for. When her grandmother dies, Tamsyn leaves her Devonshire seaside town and ship merchant Uncle Martin to live with Uncle Gideon in his armourer’s house on the Thames.
Having a wife and large family, Gideon is deemed a more suitable guardian, but Tamsyn “did not want to be brought up properly, she only wanted to be happy”. She also longs to “have adventure and sail the seas of the world” — how on earth will she manage so far from the sea?
Though something of a fish out of water in London’s chaos, Tamsyn’s imagination and heart are captured by the river traffic that passes Dolphin House, with her new excitement engagingly evoked alongside details of life in Tudor London — the Royal Dockyard, Billingsgate fish market, the autumnal “pink-flushed sky” behind Westminster, King Henry VIII himself travelling in the Royal Barge with Queen Anne Boleyn. Tellingly, Tamsyn “liked the Queen best, observing how her eyes were “terribly unhappy”.
Then, on magic-charged Midsummer’s Eve, a Wise Woman presages that Tamsyn will find her “heart’s desire”, enhancing the novel’s aura of enchantment, and leading to a delightful denouement. Heartily satisfying for 9+ year-olds who love historic fiction, this also comes recommended as wonderful book to read together — no one is too old for the joys of reading aloud and being read to, and this ideal for exactly that.
If only she'd been born a boy, Tamsyn would never have been sent away to Uncle Gideon's - the armourer's - house when her grandmother died. She could have stayed by the wild sea that she loved with her Uncle Martin, the ship merchant.
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But instead, she is bound for busy, bustling Tudor London, and the armourer's house, far from the coast and far from her beloved ships. Homesick and lonely in the loud family of cousins, it isn't until she meets the strange old Wise Woman that Tamsyn is finally promised her "heart's desire" .
Rosemary Sutcliff wrote books for those aged 9 to 90, and is perhaps most well-known for her meticulously researched historical novels for children, offering generations of readers a “magic carpet into the past”.
In this book, Tamsyn, nearly nine, leaves her sleepy Devon town by the sea for a new life in sixteenth-century London. She arrives at her uncle’s home on the River Thames, and is immediately enchanted by the brightly painted carved blue dolphins that adorn it.
The ships and river traffic passing Dolphin House – including the royal barge carrying King Henry VIII and his new Queen Anne Boleyn – feed Tamsyn’s imagination and her dreams of going to sea for a life of voyage and discovery. But as she soon finds out, adventure and excitement can also be found closer to home in Tudor London.
Rosemary Sutcliff was born in Surrey, the daughter of a naval officer. At the age of two she contracted the progressively wasting Still's disease, and hence spent most of her life in a wheelchair. Her first children's book was published in 1950, and from then on she devoted her time and talents to the writing of children's historical novels, which have placed her name high in the field of contemporary children's literature. Rosemary received an OBE in the 1975 Birthday Honours List. Rosemary Sutcliff's novels about Roman Britain have won much critical acclaim. The best-known of these is her The Eagle of the Ninth trilogy, of which the second book in the trilogy, The Lantern Bearers , was awarded the 1959 Carnegie Medal. Rosemary died in 1992 at the age of 72.
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The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed The Armourer's House and determined it is suitable for children aged 9-12 years old
The Armourer's House features in the following genres: Classic Literature, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Featured Books for 9+ readers, Recommendations, Gift Books, Children’s / Teenage stationery and miscellaneous items, Historical Fiction, School Stories, Featured Books for 11+ readers
Hardback, Paperback. £17.99, down from the £19.99 cover price. In Stock.
The Armourer's House was written by Rosemary Sutcliff and published by Manderley Press Ltd
The Armourer's House has 296 pages
£17.99, reduced from £19.99. In Stock.
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