The Armourers House by Rosemary Sutcliff

The Armourers House Reviews

• 
  Christina Baehr

  Delightful. My six year old was enchanted by this simple, domestic story about a little girl in Tudor London. Partway through we discussed the absence of illustrations. "I don't need them," she confided in a whisper. "I can see the pictures in my head." And so can I.
• 
  Elizabeth

  Thoroughly and completely loved this. The detail is exquisite and makes the story vivid in its Tudor England setting. The characters are delightful and warm and real and Tamsyn is such a lovely little heroine. I can see myself knocking loudly on the door of the Dolphin House and being dragged up by the Almost-Twins to eat bread-and-raisins and climbing up the winding stairs to Kit’s Castle with Piers, Tamsyn, and Littlest to dream amongst the frosty, glittering stars above London Town. I have a feeling this is going to be a top book of 2022.
• 
  Edelweiss

  This is honestly one of my favourite books on my shelves. A delightful conversational tone rather reminiscent of the Chronicles of Narnia (though this book really doesn't need comparison to anything else, it's good enough on its own.) Full of fascinating snippets of life in Tudor times, woven seamlessly into the story; Sutcliff is the master of using accurate historical information to enrich her writing, without it feeling anything like an info-dump.
  And the heroine is very appealing: a nine-year old girl, Tamsyn, who goes to live with a large family of cousins she has never met, in London. Incredibly homesick and lonely at first, but she finds her place in the family, and forms a heartwarming friendship with her older cousin Piers.
  Actually, 'heartwarming' is a good word to describe the whole book. It's one of those ones that leaves you feeling warm and happy inside.
  Basically, Sutcliff takes one into the England of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn and makes it seem real, and living, as though it's happening just around the corner. (Tamsyn actually sees Henry, and Anne, taking a royal trip down the Thames, and has her own thoughts on them - sweet and moving.)
  HIGHLY recommended if you have an interest in the human side of history, or just like a great book. Ages five to one hundred; I also personally think this would also make a wonderful read-aloud book.
• 
  Allison Tebo

  4 1/2 stars!!
  
  RTC.
• 
  Jae

  I remember reading this as a 12 year old child and absolutely loving it. One of those classic children's books that transport you to another time and place in which you inwardly live until the story is finished, and even for a while afterwards.
• 
  Sarah

  Charming story, with the emphasis on beautiful descriptions of Elizabethan London, without the horrors of bear baiting and ordure in the streets. Made me nostalgic for the reading experiences of childhood, when somehow my imagination felt stronger, and I could make a book like this live. A really lovely Christmas book that deserves to be read every Christmas.
• 
  Ness Kingsley

  Sutcliff's descriptions are always so beautiful. And her characters! Oh her characters are so wonderfully drawn.
  
  Not my most favourite, but still very good.
• 
  Amy

  This was a lovely read aloud with my kids (12, 9, 6, 3) about what living in Renaissance London with one family looked like. Enjoyed by all of us!
• 
  Kaela Noel

  Bless Manderley Press for reissuing this gem of a book by Rosemary Sutcliff in 2022, first published in 1951 and out of print for years. It’s just wonderful—effortless historical fiction for all ages, beautifully written, with a sense of magic and mystery, and terrific characters who feel of their time yet completely real and compelling. I can’t recommend it highly enough, especially for a family read aloud. It deserves to be a classic. And this edition is so beautifully made it’s just a joy to hold and read!
• 
  Ann

  This is really a book for children. I didn't like it as much as her Roman Britain series 'The Eagle of the Ninth' etc. I thought it gave a very idealised view of Tudor England, there wasn't much realism, it was all too cosy, even for children! My main reason for reading it was because it was published in the year of my birth so I can tick off one of the Reading Challenge categories!!!
• 
  Janis Bryan

  I wonder if I had read this book as a child I would have loved it as much as I do this day. I’ve often wanted to know what the streets of London looked like in Tudor times, particularly as I spent many adult years on its outskirts.
  
  As a child, references to London would have had little resonance for me but as an adult I am delighted to picture Tudor life on familiar urban streets, now spoiled with modern traffic and modern shops and offices.
  
  It’s a feast of a book, filled with vivid descriptions on every page. I’m sure the seamier side has been overlooked in the interest of a good wholesome tale, but there are poignant hints painted carefully, such as the difficult smile on the Laughing Lady and the ambiguous feeling the Almost Twins have about the woman in the woods.
  
  I wonder if there was a sequel. I so want to know what became of Piers and Tamsyn.
  
  A lovely read.
• 
  Claire Hill

  I love how older books just have this JOY to them, a sort of swooping in your chest and tickle at the back of your throat from the wonder of the world through a child’s eyes and the utter certainty that no matter how bad it gets everything will be all right. The descriptions in this were simply marvelous and I knew all along what the ending would be but that didn’t make me choke up any less when it arrived.
• 
  Rose

  Despite the fact that this is most definitely a book for children, it is written with Rosemary Sutcliff's signature magic, and I haven't enjoyed anything so wholeheartedly in a long time.
  It is a wholesome but engrossing tale of a little girl, set in the early 1500s, during the reign of old Henry the Pervert, and it is a rather beautiful look into a time before their monarchy utterly ruined England.
• 
  Lisa Houlihan

  Holy shit, the unconscious racism. A child has to play the villain in make-believe, her red-headed cousins tell her, because her (white) coloring is dark of skin, hair, and eye. People in Europe are curious about the New World because "no one" lives there. 1951.
• 
  Rachel

  Historical fiction for children! A very sweet little book that would probably make a great read-aloud.
• 
  Joan

  This is one of Sutcliff's earlier books and it shows. While I enjoyed the book, it was lacking in plot. Tamsy is sent to her Uncle and Aunt's house in London even though she really doesn't want to leave her home in Bideford or her favorite uncle and his ships. The book is a bit precious but other than that and the limping storyline, it was fine. The characters are all well drawn and the real point of the story is a success: to show what everyday life in London was like during the time of Henry VIII. Tamsy is homesick but grows to love the oldest son, Piers, who also loves ships. His dream is to go to sea but instead he is apprenticed to his father, the armourer, one who makes armament from swords to knight's chain and plate mail. He has no choice since the oldest son follows the father's trade and the oldest son had drowned a few years earlier. They go through a year of time and have adventures that will seem rather mild and boring to kids raised on the type of stories told today. Where this excels is in presenting everyday life such as the interesting fact that at that time the English were a nation of singers. The best writing in the book is when the two children are sharing a make believe adventure with each other and is the best description of make believe that I've read in a kid's book. There is no villain in the story unless you count Grandmother who insists on her deathbed on sending Tamsy to her married son's house rather than let her stay with her unmarried son. Since that is the end of Grandmother, she doesn't make for much of a villain. I would recommend this to Sutcliff admirers who want to experience her whole oeuvre. I would hesitate to give this to most kids. Perhaps that bookworm who has read everything or that quiet kid who might feel very comfortable with this sort of book. Otherwise, I think it would be most appreciated by adults even though meant for children.
• 
  SBF

  This was a sweet little book. One of Sutcliff's stories for a juvenile audience, it's a slice of life in Tudor England, under the reign of Henry VIII and his second queen, Anne Boleyn (they have a brief cameo in the story). Pre-teen Tamsyn has been sent to London to live with relatives after her grandmother's death, and the story covers her trying to find her place in her new family and new surroundings. Unlike so many of these type of stories with tiresome "we hate you and treat you badly" families picking on the poor cousin, Tamsyn's aunt and uncle welcome her and her cousins are good to her, but it's hard to find a place in a loving family that seems complete without you. I liked how that part of the plot progressed. Sutcliff's descriptions of 1500s England make you feel like you are there seeing it. The story progresses through a year, covering different seasons and events (May Day--I loved the description of the Morris dancers; Halloween, Christmas). I particularly enjoyed Sutcliff's chapter on the tale of Tam Lin. It wouldn't make a whole novel on its own, but putting it as a story told by Aunt Deborah to the children on Halloween night was perfect. Many historical stories for children put young characters into major world events, meeting famous people, but I think a story like this, just about life at the time, captures the historical feeling much better. This book was a pleasant discovery.
• 
  Ruth

  Sweet story about a young girl living with her Aunt and Uncle in London during the reign of Henry VIII. The author's tone was a bit schoolmarmish, but tells the story in a kind voice that does seem right for the 1950s in England.
  
  A Book Riot Read Harder Challenge trifecta for me: middle grade YA novel, historical fiction set before 1900, and a book published in the decade in which I was born.
• 
  Jennifer Heise

  What a great period piece! I picked this up because people had recommended Sutcliff to me, but I'm not much on pitched battles. I'm glad that I know Sutcliff always did her homework, because for me this time in history will always evoke the house and the activities in this book.
• 
  CLM

  Orphaned Tamsyn goes to live with her uncle, an armourer in Henry VIII's England, where she finds much in common with her cousin Piers, who longs to voyage to the Indies.
• 
  Mckinley

  Liked (a bit more than her Roman fighting books).
• 
  Marineke

  Rather boring for a Rosemary Sutcliff! Too much sugar for my taste.
• 
  scarlettraces

  (3.5, because it's Sutcliff after all)