Book
The forest laird : a tale of William Wallace / Jack Whyte.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780765331564
- Physical Description: xxiii, 483 p. ; 25 cm.
- Edition: 1st U.S. ed.
- Publisher: New York : Forge, 2012.
Content descriptions
- General Note:
- "A Tom Doherty Associates book."
Search for related items by subject
- Subject:
- Wallace, William, Sir, d. 1305 > Fiction.
Scotland > History > Wallace's Rising, 1297-1304 > Fiction. - Genre:
- Biographical fiction.
Canadian fiction.
Historical fiction.
Search for related items by series
Available copies
- 9 of 10 copies available at BC Interlibrary Connect. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Smithers Public Library.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 10 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Holdable? | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smithers Public Library | F WHY (Text) | 35101000356183 | Adult Fiction | Volume hold | Available | - |
- Library Journal Reviews : LJ Reviews 2012 January #1
William Wallace, a hero of Scotland, is visited by a priest in his London prison cell on the dark morning before his brutal execution on August 24, 1305. This priest, there to hear his confession, is also his cousin and the narrator of this story. As a cleric librarian, Father James is compelled to chronicle the pair's early boyhood lives and adult adventures together, often refuting rumors and bringing to bear the complexities of politics of state, church, and conflicting tribal philosophies. Whyte, author of the "Templar" trilogy and the "Camulod Chronicles," launches a new historical trilogy about Scotland's greatest heroes (next up will be Robert the Bruce and Sir James [the Black] Douglas). VERDICT Wallace, the archer and forester of Selkirk Forest, along with his band of followers, bears a strong correlation to Robin Hood. His fateful rise to "liberator of Scotland" comes late in this book, and many readers, expecting Mel Gibson's Braveheart, may find this narrative a bit flat, slow, and at times downright tedious.âRussell Miller, Prescott P.L., AZ
[Page 99]. (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. - Library Journal Reviews : LJ Reviews Newsletter
Whyte traces the life, development, and awesomeness of William Wallace who, after he became Mel Gibson and insulted Jewish people everywhere, was one of the main dudes leading 13th-century Scotland's independence movement*. Through a cleverly invented narrator, Wallace's cousin Jamie, Whyte describes daily routines and historical events and lays down the detail needed to convey a story of this historical complexity. As a monk, Jamie's dual concerns are learning (he's the abbey's librarian) and serving as liaison between church and nobility; these jobs give him insight into the political attitudes of everyone from the royalty to the peasants. Jamie also chronicles Will's growth into a fleshed-out hero/outlaw/rebel/patriot. The details that usually bog historical fiction down to "unreadable" are here, but damn if Whyte doesn't manage to keep things engaging and consistently paced. One learns of archering as well as monking (Wallace begins as a bowman): "Iberian yew was unobtainable now in its native form, since most of Iberia had fallen to the Moors in the eighth century, but prudent merchants had salvaged a few thousand seedlings and saplings from the largely unoccupied but still contested areas of Galicia and Asturias during the tenth century, and plantations had been established in Italia and had flourished there, precious and close guarded." Wait, did Proust write this? Soâ¦why should dudes read it?It's thick. There's brotherhood, patriotism, and political intrigue. And archery. Plus there's just enough Scottish dialect to leave a hint of haggis. *Never mind that a scant 400 freaking years later England and Scotland joined up again anyway, thus wasting the lives of thousands of soldiers and "all those innocent contractors" hired to fix the castles and schlep the catapults and grog for the armies. - "Books For Dudes " LJ Reviews 3/1/2012 (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. - Publishers Weekly Reviews : PW Reviews 2012 January #1
In this new take on the legend of Scottish rebel William Wallace, author Whyte (Order in Chaos) begins at the very beginning. The narrator, Wallace's cousin Jamie, remembers him as an angry young orphan who grew up shaped by Ewen Scrymgeour, a once-outlawed archer, and Bishop Wishart of Glasgow, a kind but ruthless patriot who nurtured Wallace's hatred of the English. Since little is known of Wallace as a historical figure and many of the stories about him conflict, Whyte uses all the myths in turn. First Wallace is a bereaved child abused by the English, then a lord's son raised to lead men, then a happy outlaw in the greenwood with his beloved wife, Mirren. Future volumes in this planned trilogy will cover Wallace as a bitter widower and a great rebel general. Although he is the book's protagonist, Wallace himself is curiously remote, as if Whyte can't bring himself to write about his childhood hero with much intimacy. Regardless, Whyte has produced a smart, no-nonsense work of historical fiction that will appeal to Scottish history buffs, readers of authors like Bernard Cornwell, and fans of Whyte's Arthurian and Templar novels. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary. (Feb.)
[Page ]. Copyright 2011 PWxyz LLC