Sherwood
by Parke Godwin
Our Price: $26.10
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Parke GodwinEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1995-08
ISBN: 0380709953
Publisher: Avon Books (Mm)
Book Reviews of Sherwood
Book Review: A balanced view of Robin Hood? Yes, and it works.
Summary: 5 Stars
Parke Godwin's Sherwood is among the stack of books that I've owned seemingly forever, and I re-read every few years just for the joy of it. I'd argue that it's one of the best re-tellings of the Robin Hood tale (the other being The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley).
First, Godwin sets Robin Hood not during the usual "King Richard the Lionhearted" era but in a more interesting time: the Norman conquest and the years immediately following. Certainly, there's more inherent cultural friction between Saxons (including Robin, who's a thane of a small village), Normans (including the sheriff of Nottingham, Ralf), Danes and the occasional Welsh slave.
Second, Parke Godwin's books all have wonderful characterization, and he chooses to tell stories from non-obvious viewpoints (such as that of Guinevierre, after Arthur's death). In this one, the viewpoint characters shift around a bit, but the main stories are told by Robin (who discovers the concepts of justice and law), and sheriff Ralf (who has his own path to follow, from war to peacetime). Darnit, it *works.* Everyone makes reasonable and sensible decisions, even when they are (literally) at each other's throats. The love story is sweet but not cloying. Marian is no shrinking vine whose main role is to be prize on a pedestal; she's a strong woman (and marries Robin). (Maybe that's one of the reasons I like both this book and McKinley's.) And there's even an appealing cat.
It's told with humor, warmth, and the underlying assumption that everyone is doing the best he can with the information he has available at the time. Even the villains.
This is simply a great novel. Pick up a copy.
Historical Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Historical Books
Pirate Latitudes: A Novelby Michael Crichton
Harper; Published: 2009-11-24; Roughcut; Book
Best price: $2.49
Price in other shops:
The Master Butchers Singing Club: A Novelby Louise Erdrich
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.83
Price in other shops:
The Last Witchfinder: A Novelby James Morrow
William Morrow; Published: 2006-03-14; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops:
Zorroby Isabel Allende
HarperAudio; Published: 2005-05-03; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $3.09
Price in other shops:
The Hot Kid: A Novelby Elmore Leonard
William Morrow; Published: 2005-05-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.89
Price in other shops:
The Last Kingdom (The Saxon Chronicles Series #1)Mass Market Paperback; Book
Bones of the Hills (Conqueror, Book 3)by Conn Iggulden
Harper Collins Canada; Published: 2008; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $44.70
Marchby Geraldine Brooks
Penguin Books; Published: 2006; Paperback; Book
Emperor (Emperor 1)by Conn Iggulden
Harpercollins Pb; Published: 2003-06-07; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.80
Girl With a Pearl Earringby Tracy Chevalier
Harper Collins Audio; Published: 2002-06-17; Audio Cassette; Book
Best price: $86.82
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
The Snake Oil Wars or Scheherazade Ginsberg Strikes Againby Parke Godwin
Doubleday; Published: 1989-07-28; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.43
Price in other shops:
Scarlet (The King Raven, Book 2)by Stephen R. Lawhead
Thomas Nelson; Published: 2008-06-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.53
Price in other shops:
Tuck (The King Raven Trilogy)by Stephen R. Lawhead
Thomas Nelson; Published: 2009-12-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.99
Price in other shops:
Hood (The King Raven Trilogy, Book 1)by Stephen R. Lawhead
Thomas Nelson; Published: 2008-04-08; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.50
Price in other shops:
Robin and the Kingby Parke Godwin
Avon Books (Mm); Published: 1994-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.76
Price in other shops:
BELOVED EXILEby Parke Godwin
IBOOKS, INC.; Published: 2001-12-31; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.34
Price in other shops:
Firelordby Parke Godwin
Bantam Books; Published: 1982; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $50.00