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18th out of 57 books
—
135 voters
Hawksmaid: The Untold Story of Robin Hood and Maid Marian
Before she was Maid Marian, she was Matty....
Matty has been raised to dance well, embroider exquisitely, and marry nobly. But when Matty's mother is murdered before her very eyes and her father, a nobleman, is reduced to poverty, Matty's life changes.
As the daughter of Nottingham's most famous falconer, she finds a new destiny in the hawks her father keeps. She begi
...moreHardcover, 292 pages
Published
May 1st 2010
by HarperCollins
(first published October 1st 2009)
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Matty starts out as a 10 year old, and at the end of the book she's a teenager. (I'm pretty sure.) Her mother gets murdered. Matty has an unusual relationship with the hawks her family owns. She can "talk" to them, making little sounds, but not real words. She is VERY experienced for a 10 year old.
Ok, I'm not going to go into all the details.
One of the things that really disappointed me is the romance. I mean, every time Fynn (who is now Robin) and Matty (who is now Marian) have a little romant...more
Ok, I'm not going to go into all the details.
One of the things that really disappointed me is the romance. I mean, every time Fynn (who is now Robin) and Matty (who is now Marian) have a little romant...more
I founded this book in the library and borrowed it because it looked interesting and I was curious on how the ending would appear. As I was reading it, I wasn't very thrilled with the results. It wasn't bad but it wasn't the best. It could have been written better and it needed a more advancing romance between the characters Matty/Marian and Fynn/Robin. The beginning wasn't all bad but it was very plain and simple.
As I kept on reading, I was pretty amused with Matty. She had a stubborn attitude...more
As I kept on reading, I was pretty amused with Matty. She had a stubborn attitude...more
May 07, 2011
Panda Incognito
rated it
1 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
no one
Shelves:
action-adventure,
animals,
never-read-again,
fantasy,
romance,
juvenile,
read-in-2011,
set-in-england
This book is so bad that it isn't even funny! I don't know how this book got published. I've read stories by my unpublished writer friends which are far better than this.
I stumbled upon this book in the library, and checked it out because it looked intriguing. It's a juvenile book by an author that I'm familiar with, so I assumed it would be decent, and it was. But the story was absolutely horrible. My complaints could carry on as long as the book itself, but I shall narrow them down.
The untold...more
I stumbled upon this book in the library, and checked it out because it looked intriguing. It's a juvenile book by an author that I'm familiar with, so I assumed it would be decent, and it was. But the story was absolutely horrible. My complaints could carry on as long as the book itself, but I shall narrow them down.
The untold...more
This book left me completely frustrated. From the very begin there are major fallacies. Reasons for actions are often completely lacking, or even contradictory to the person's purpose, and the resulting consequences don't make sense and often are completely absent. Often the author will have the character do something or say something that is never followed up on or comes to any purpose. For instance, the point is made in a very sincere way that Character A cannot allow Character B to die of sta...more
Oh boy. I’ve been reading Robin Hood novels lately, but I really shouldn’t have bothered finishing this one. Heroine Matty—the real star of the Robin Hood story, is ridiculous. Beginning at about ten years old she learns to talk to hawks, wield a sword, feed the manor, etc. She wears pants, fights badguys, gives Robin all his good ideas and then carries them out for him, finds buried treasure, keeps the castle scoured clean, nurses lepers, magically turns into a bird, and manages to faint or col...more
A book about falconry and a strong girl character! What's not to like? Alas, I bumped into the potatoes on page six (the entire page is about potatoes, it isn't a single slip) and couldn't continue.
If you'd like to read about mediaeval falconry, try The Noble Hawks instead. The main character is a boy, but the story is wonderful and it's well-told.
EDIT: I thought I should give this one more chance, and dipped into it again. The too-perfect Matty irritated me - but the real clincher was when a m...more
If you'd like to read about mediaeval falconry, try The Noble Hawks instead. The main character is a boy, but the story is wonderful and it's well-told.
EDIT: I thought I should give this one more chance, and dipped into it again. The too-perfect Matty irritated me - but the real clincher was when a m...more
Molly has been raised to dance well, embroider exquisitely and marry nobly. However, all is for naught when she sees her mother murdered before her eyes and her nobleman father reduced to poverty. She is the daughter of Nottingham's most famed falconer and it is with the falcons that she finds her place-despite the fact that she is femine. She has a gift and a new destiny in the hawks-understanding their thoughts and speaking their language. It is a terrible time in England for the true king has...more
Rather thin, a bit to pointedly feminist (by which I mean the point had to be made the Marian really was responsible for all that Robin Hood managed to get done), and unbelievable. I liked the parts about hawks and that could have been expanded without the whole being-a-hawk thing - possibly I would have liked Matty more if the focus had been on her discovery of, passion for hawks. I have no problem with the idea that Marian had a lot more involvement in the doings of Robin Hood than some storie...more
I am a complete sucker for Robin Hood retellings. Ever since I read The Outlaws of Sherwood, by Robin McKinley, I can't get enough of them. This one was so good, different from all the rest but with enough of the familiar elements that I was satisfied. Matty is the daughter of an English noble, and when she is a child her home is invaded by the vile Guy of Gisborne. In the aftermath of the invasion, Matty finds herself bearing more responsibility than a child should, and she learns to hunt with...more
Historical fantasy! Maid Marian grew up as Matty, daughter of an English lord, living in a castle. Her mother was murdered at the order of Prince John, and her family's wealth was stolen.. To survive, her father teaches her the art of falconry, and how to care for different types of falcons. Prince John's cruel treatment of the people of England gets worse, and Matty and her friends begin to look for ways to help their friends and neighbors... and theyare transformed into the outlaws known as Ro...more
He was Flynn. She was Matty. This is the story of how they became Robin Hood and Maid Marian.
What I thought: My obsession with Robin Hood is entirely due to the BBC's Robin Hood TV series. I was thrilled to hear about Kathryn Lasky's new book honoring the timeless hero. I wasn't disappointed. Lasky's version of Robin Hood and Maid Marian's story is unique. I was hooked from the first page. Hawksmaid is a real and believable back story that explains Robin and Marian's relationship in the movies a...more
What I thought: My obsession with Robin Hood is entirely due to the BBC's Robin Hood TV series. I was thrilled to hear about Kathryn Lasky's new book honoring the timeless hero. I wasn't disappointed. Lasky's version of Robin Hood and Maid Marian's story is unique. I was hooked from the first page. Hawksmaid is a real and believable back story that explains Robin and Marian's relationship in the movies a...more
I read this book for two reasons. The first reason is that Adam begged me to read one of his young adult books, and the second reason is that I am a Robin Hood fan. I tried to abandon this book more than once. Adam told me to hang in there. Wow, that is an interesting reversal! I don't think that it is possible for me to care any less about birds and falconry. To say that the first one-third of the book is mostly about falconry would be a gross understatement. Adam was right once I got past that...more
This is an enjoyable retelling where Marian is the key character. I love her interactions with her birds of prey. That was a great way to visualize her as a character. The main problem with this book is that it never escalates. There are events that happen, but the tone never matures: it begins when she is a child and it sort of stays with that tone through the whole book. If the tone of the book had matured with the character, I think this really could have gone somewhere. It began with such pr...more
A re-imagining of the story of Robin Hood and Maid Marian as pre-teen friends--this time the focus is on Marian, really a young female falconer named Matty, whose family and home have been devastated by Prince John and his associates. The history's a little wonky, but the detailed descriptions of the protagonist's interactions with her hawks was wonderful and shows a great deal of knowledge and/or research on the part of the author, who clearly has a passion for birds. I would have preferred mor...more
I like Lasky's version of Robin Hood's story. I've read some folklore ballads about Robin, but he seemed to be no better than ordinary bandit. Here he and his band are real heroes fighting to help their people. The author shows us how the heroes grow from children to adults, and it's great, though it makes the story a little slow. Of course, the real gem of this book is falconry. All those hunts and flights and trainings are just awesome! I like that every of Matty's hawks has its own character...more
The untold story of Maid Marian...
Matilda Fitzwalter is the daughter of an English lord. But when her mother is murdered and her father reduced to poverty, Matty takes refuge with the last remnant of her former life- her father's hunting birds, who become her dearest friends.
Trouble is rising in England. The Sheriff of Nottingham is coming to power, and the true king has been kidnapped. Determined to fight, Matty's childhood friend Fynn becomes Robin Hood, and she Maid Marian.
If you've ever wond...more
Matilda Fitzwalter is the daughter of an English lord. But when her mother is murdered and her father reduced to poverty, Matty takes refuge with the last remnant of her former life- her father's hunting birds, who become her dearest friends.
Trouble is rising in England. The Sheriff of Nottingham is coming to power, and the true king has been kidnapped. Determined to fight, Matty's childhood friend Fynn becomes Robin Hood, and she Maid Marian.
If you've ever wond...more
ok, i love robin hood!!!!!!! i have the bbc robin hood box set. all three seasons. i have the movie robin hood prince of thieves. i have the russel crow robin hood. and evry time i go over to my friend kaela's house we watch robin hood: men in tights. i've even seen the old black and with tv series with richard green.i love the diseny movie. i have five different ficitional robin hood book. sadly including this one. Hawksmaid sucked. there's no other way to say it. it SUCK! this book was just on...more
I’m giving Hawksmaid three stars, friends, because the parts of it that really irritated me were also fairly nifty-keen, albeit in a completely insane and totally unrealistic way.
I mean, seriously.
Maid Marian (this is a pseudonym, you understand—her real name is Matty) is the end-all-be-all of Perfect Person.
She’s smarter than all the rest of the Merry Men put together.
She builds secret tree houses.
She cares for all the members of her family.
She hunts, fishes, spies, climbs trees, and catches b...more
I mean, seriously.
Maid Marian (this is a pseudonym, you understand—her real name is Matty) is the end-all-be-all of Perfect Person.
She’s smarter than all the rest of the Merry Men put together.
She builds secret tree houses.
She cares for all the members of her family.
She hunts, fishes, spies, climbs trees, and catches b...more
3 likes · like · see review
I was going to give this 3, but the ending was so weird and pretty much stupid, that I just gave it 2. In the end, her 'spirit' goes into a hawk and so she goes around as a hawk. I don't really have a problem with that, but the idea is not really consistent. Through out the book, the people are normal, normal things happen, and then this? If the book was about a magical Robin Hood and Maid Marian, I probably could have cared less, but since the story is without magic and spirits, then all the su...more
I read the first... one? Two? books of the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series and I swear they weren't this bad. Seriously, Lasky, what gives? I mean, just on a writing front this was... this was terrible. Really. The characters never spoke naturally, there were sentences that didn't make sense, and reading it was a frustrating experience just short of being a chore.
Oh, and that plot. ARRRRGH THAT PLOT. I don't even know. I don't even know. What even happened? I got that Matty could talk to her hawks...more
Oh, and that plot. ARRRRGH THAT PLOT. I don't even know. I don't even know. What even happened? I got that Matty could talk to her hawks...more
First, there is something I have to get off my chest that really bugged me:
There were NO POTATOES in 12th century England! Got that? THERE WERE NO POTATOES IN MEDIEVAL EUROPE! None. Nada. Not a one. No, no, no. Robin Hood characters and potatoes never, ever met! There were no French fries, no crisps, no chips, no mashed potatoes, no sweet potatoes, no baked potatoes, and if you needed somewhere to hide when there was an attack on the castle going on, there would certainly not have been a bag of...more
There were NO POTATOES in 12th century England! Got that? THERE WERE NO POTATOES IN MEDIEVAL EUROPE! None. Nada. Not a one. No, no, no. Robin Hood characters and potatoes never, ever met! There were no French fries, no crisps, no chips, no mashed potatoes, no sweet potatoes, no baked potatoes, and if you needed somewhere to hide when there was an attack on the castle going on, there would certainly not have been a bag of...more
5 likes · like · see review
As a reader, I much prefer Lasky's 500 kingdoms tales in which she mixes romance with tweaking of classic fairy tale tradition. I like a little bit of humor with my fantasy. That said, I think there are girls who will love this somewhat somber re-telling of the Maid Marian / Robin Hood story. The falconry is a bit of a twist on the tale, and it is nice to see a heroine a bit more resourceful in this age of "rescue me" clones of Twilight. Good for girls grades 5-7 who like heroic fantasy or girl-...more
One part historical romance, one part origin story, and one part magic, Hawksmaid is a prequel to the Robin Hood legend as told by Matty, the girl who will grow up to be Maid Marian.
All the familiar elements are here - the wicked Prince John, the Merry Men stealing from the rich to give to the poor. What's new is Matty's vocation as a falconer, a person who trains birds of prey. It's a twist that plays out in a fantastical third act as Matty goes on a mission for king and country.
For ages 10 a...more
All the familiar elements are here - the wicked Prince John, the Merry Men stealing from the rich to give to the poor. What's new is Matty's vocation as a falconer, a person who trains birds of prey. It's a twist that plays out in a fantastical third act as Matty goes on a mission for king and country.
For ages 10 a...more
I like to read different versions of folktales and fairy tales, but this story of Maid Marian and Robin Hood was just painful. Marian is intertwined with the hawks that her father raises, and eventually mind-melds with one as she is being held prisoner. I believe this bird/girl hybrid leads Robin and his band of teen boys to her rescue, but I couldn't be sure. By the end I was just skimming. Very painful.
I love the Robin Hood/Maid Marian story and this was a fun take on it. I loved seeing them as children and watching the band of merry men evolve. The storyline of Matty and the hawks was a little bit much for me, however. I like historical fiction and I like fantasy but for some reason the mix in this particular story didn't really work for me.
A fun read for fans of Robin Hood and Maid Marian, though.
A fun read for fans of Robin Hood and Maid Marian, though.
I loved this book! I tried to read it once before but it had to go back to the library before I got past chapter two. Then I put it on hold but it went off hold before I got there. So now that I finally got it I finished it in one day. It was amazing! As I got closer to the end and things weren't looking as good I was a little worried that it would end horribly and that I would not be satisfied with the book after waiting so long to get it but now that I have just finished it I am totally satisf...more
I liked the story, but details of the budding romance seems to be lacking. I believed they cared deeply for one another, but not love. I needed more than just protective behavior from Robin... notes, conversations, hugs, I don't know! Just something more. The rest of the story is great. I'd recommend it as a good young adult book for those who like that time period.
Even though this doesn't fall under the category of "Fairytale retellings" in the normal sense, i still felt like it was one. It was a retelling of the story of Robin Hood and Maid Marian, and i liked it. I especially liked how clearly the author understood the birds, and how well she was able to convey that to the reader. All in all, worth the read :)
Great juvenile literature. Sometimes a simpler book with less words is just what you need. It incorporates information about the kind-of lost art of falconry. Now that we don't have to hunt for out food people don't train these birds so much anymore. It makes me wish I could train a hawk. Also good bc I like all Robin Hood stories. And a strong female character!
really great, and another Robin Hood book. i havent read it in awhile, but i did a report on it. i cant wait to read it again. this is one of the first robing hood books that i read and it really made a good impresesion. ive read a couplel of other robin hood books since then and each one is slightly different
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| This book was OK?! | 2 | 7 | Aug 16, 2011 09:35pm |
Kathryn Lasky is the American author of many critically acclaimed books, including several Dear America books, several Royal Diaries books, 1984 Newbery Honor winning Sugaring Time, The Night Journey, and the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her latest book, Guardians of Ga'Hoole Book 15: The War of the Ember, was released on November 1, 2008. Guardians of Gahoo...more
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Jun 26, 2011 03:45pm