Rating: 
Summary: A great, enrapturing read
Review: I was assigned to read this book in school, and was at first hesitant, but found it quite enjoyable. The story is an interesting one, and Ms. Alder does a good job of providing an enjoyable interface for the rich historical information. Disregard any bad reviews, it is a truly good book and deserves a read. You'll probably learn a lot on the way, and it is time well-spent. The only reason I did not give it 5, is that it sometimes drags on with some unimportant details, but it is still a great story with a solid plot, and is worth the longer read (all the more time to savor it!).
Rating:
Summary: A great, enrapturing read
Review: I was assigned to read this book in school, and was at first hesitant, but found it quite enjoyable. The story is an interesting one, and Ms. Alder does a good job of providing an enjoyable interface for the rich historical information. Disregard any bad reviews, it is a truly good book and deserves a read. You'll probably learn a lot on the way, and it is time well-spent. The only reason I did not give it 5, is that it sometimes drags on with some unimportant details, but it is still a great story with a solid plot, and is worth the longer read (all the more time to savor it!).
Rating:
Summary: The King's Shadow
Review: I would probably give this book a rather high rating, but since it was mostly focused on the wars , I was not particularly thrilled. Overall though, I think I was a good book worth the time reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent writing!!! I couldn't put it down!!!
Review: I'm a mid-30's mom and find this book fascinating! Don't be put off by this being just for kids! It's not! If you love history and adventure in a well written soup, this book might interest you!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent writing!!! I couldn't put it down!!!
Review: I'm a mid-30's mom and find this book fascinating! Don't be put off by this being just for kids! It's not! If you love history and adventure in a well written soup, this book might interest you!
Rating:
Summary: Superbly written - the only disappointment is when it ends
Review: I've been reading books with a medieval theme for months trying to locate the perfect one to use in my 9th grade world history course. King's Shadow is by far the absolute best! From the very beginning the reader becomes emotionally tied to Evyn's character. This connection continues through the story with every fateful turn in Evyn's life. I found it most interesting to experience the Battle of Hastings from the viewpoint of the English and found myself sympathizing with them as they valiantly lost their beloved country. William the Conqueror is, of course, portrayed as the villian but rightfully so and I found myself hoping that this time the English would prevail. This story has all the adventure, emotion, and excitement needed to maintain the interest of readers young and old and will definitely become part of my thematic curriculum.
Rating:
Summary: If you LIKE historical fiction...
Review: If you ejoy historical fiction, especially about the medieval period, then by all means read this book. I think the reviewers who were bored are probably more interested in other types of literature (or perhaps they were forced to read it, and much prefer video games...) Myself, I will never think of William the Conqueror the same way again. I had always thought of Kind Harold as sort of a hapless unfortunate before reading this book. There ARE two sides to everything! I "read" this by listening to the taped version while exercising on my treadmill... the exciting story kept me "on track" as it were -- providing motivation to get started and stick with my program (I hate to exercise.)
Rating:
Summary: Not like anything that I have ever read!!
Review: It was an awesome book. It didn't take me long to finish, I couldn't put it down. I liked it because of how different it was and the way everything was decribed. The Battle of Hastings was described vividly, like you were there with Evyn and Harold. Definatly high on my book recommendation list!!
Rating:
Summary: A Storyteller in the classic sense
Review: It's often said that history is written by the winner. We know of William the Conqueror and his victory at the Battle of Hastings. What few know is who it was he fought against and what that enemy was like. Now, 931 years after the fact, Elizabeth Alder has told us the story of Harold II, the last Saxon king of England. We are shown Harold's tragic story through the eyes of his "shadow", a voiceless squire who becomes one of the king's most trusted friends. While some apparently think the story boring, it touched me like few other books have. Harold is portrayed as one of the few kings who gives all of himself for his realm and it is heartbreaking to read of all his efforts to unite England, knowing that in a very short while it will all be gone. Even the chapter headings tick off the years leading up to 1066 like some sort of death knell. As to how this story has anything to do with us? If it were not for the events in this story many of us, myself included, would not even be able to read this book. We would be speaking and reading French.
Rating:
Summary: My English Teacher's Book Review
Review: Mrs. Alder is my English teacher and I say ,we didn't think she was capable of writing this well. It is strange to think of the person who yells at you and gives you detentions when you don't have your red marking pen writing a terrific book. But she did! We had to read the book for class and I know many people were prejudiced at the beginning, but towards the end, I think most of us enjoyed it. So here goes on the review:
Evyn is a young Welsh farmworker in the mid-1000's. He loses his tongue in revenge by the brothers of someone who his uncle killed. With it goes his dream of becoming a revered storyteller. His father is killed also, and he is sold into slavery. Luckily, his lady is kind and sends him to a monastery to learn how to read and write. He joins Harold the Fair as his squire and friend, and later on, his foster son. He returns to the monastery after the Battle of Hastings to write the history chronicles of their journeys and adventures. I think this book was well written, but there were a few points that I did not enjoy. When Mrs. Alder wrote about the Battle of Hastings, she was a little too descriptive. In fact, I felt sick. I understand that some information was vital to the battle, but the whole "He was hacked until he was unrecognizable" was just a touch too much. Also, in class, she told us that Ealdgyth and Harold had children together, but that was not included in the book. Since the Little Queen had no children, the children of Ealdgyth would have been heirs to the throne. I thought this would have been very important, and she only mentions it at the very end of the last chapter. But I also think there were very many strong points. She kept true to the historcal truth and detailed everything well, but not too much throughout the books. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to more of her work!
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