The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff
Publication: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (September 1, 1993) (originally published 1954), Paperback, 264pp / ISBN 0374419302
Genre: Historical Fiction, Children’s
Rating: 
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Read: September 2009
Source: Library
From the Fosseway westward to Isca Dumnoniorum the road was simply a British trackway, broadened and roughly metalled, strengthened by corduroys of logs in the softest places, but otherwise unchanged from its old estate, as it wound among the hills, thrusting farther and farther into the wilderness. (page 1)
I spotted on the shelf at my campus library, and the cover was so intriguing I was sure I’d like the book. And I did! It just took me a little while to get to that point.
Summary from Amazon:
In a.d. 125, a young Roman centurion must recover the infamous Ninth Legion’s missing symbol of honor, the eagle standard.
The beginning was almost disappointingly typical 1950′s children’s historical fiction, which to me is boring. I suppose you would have had to read a lot of kids historical fiction from that time to understand what I mean, but it’s basically the feeling the books have, and while some of them can be fun, they can also be a bit bland. So I was bored for almost…30 pages? But then! The plot took a twist (crippling injury to our hero!), a new character was introduced (Esca!), and I became fascinated. It was still pretty typical 1950′s children’s historical fiction, but it was one I could enjoy.
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