Rosemary Sutcliff

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. Although an avid reader, Rosemary made little progress with formal studies.

She left school at the age of fourteen to attend art school in Bideford, where she specialized in miniature painting. 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.

Many of her books are set in Roman Britain, a period which particularly interested her. The second in The Eagle of the Ninth trilogy, The Lantern Bearers, was awarded the 1959 Carnegie Medal.

In her lifetime, Rosemary Sutcliff was awarded the OBE and the CBE. Sadly, she died in 1992 at the age of 72.

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Featured Books, with extracts by Rosemary Sutcliff

The Eagle of the Ninth CD Audio
Rosemary Sutcliff
CD- Audio. This is a BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Rosemary Sutcliff's much-loved tale of honour, comradeship and courage. Somewhere around the year 117 AD, a Roman garrison called the Ninth Legion was ordered to put down an uprising...
Format: CD-Audio - Released: 03/03/2011
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The Eagle (Film Tie-in Edition)
Rosemary Sutcliff
STOP PRESS: The UK premiere of The Eagle took place in Leicester Square on 9 March 2011. Huge crowds were there to see Channing Tatum and other stars of the film walk up the red carpet and join...
Format: Paperback - Released: 03/02/2011
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The Eagle of the Ninth Chronicles
Rosemary Sutcliff
A welcome return of a classic story of loyalty and bravery at the time of the Romans. Brought up the stories of his father’s heroism and speculation about how he and his 5,000 soldiers disappeared without trace, Marcus sets out...
Format: Paperback - Released: 03/06/2010
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Lantern Bearers
Rosemary Sutcliff
The Roman army are leaving Britain for ever. Instead, the country is over taken by civil war and the threat of invasion. Aquila deserts his regiment to remain with his family. But the Saxon hordes are out to destroy and...
Format: Paperback - Released: 01/02/2007
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The Eagle Of The Ninth
Rosemary Sutcliff
Rosemary Sutcliff's classic piece of historical fiction mixes invented characters against the backdrop of actual events. The story is set in Roman Britain after the building of Hadrian's Wall. The reader follows a young Roman's search to discover...
Format: Paperback - Released: 07/10/2004
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