Sutcliff, Rosemary

(British, 1920–92)

Sutcliff studied at art school, and was a member of the Royal Society of miniature painters. Early in life she developed the progressively wasting Still's desease which confined her to a wheelchair. Her books, while written for children, have an adult respect for original literary and historical sources, telling stories drawn from legend, and bringing to life—and to vivid action— the magic and mystery of the distant past. The Sword and the Circle (1981) recounts the legends of King Arthur and his knights of the round table. The Eagle of the Ninth (1954) is an adventure set during the Roman occupation of Britain, and tells the story of how Marcus Flavius Aquila retrieves the lost eagle standard of the Ninth Legion from the wilds of Caledonia (Scotland).

Alan Garner, T. H. White, Mary Renault. See HISTORICAL  EC