Michael Cadnum

The Robin Hood legend is retold from the perspective of Geoffrey, Sheriff of Nottingham, in this lyrically descriptive and quietly emotional novel. All-too-human, the Sheriff is nevertheless a “worthy” man, devoted to his duty, more honorable than cruel. Haunted by a sense of emptiness and futility, and consumed by the feeling of being trapped in his life, Geoffrey is slowly awakened to a greater sense of joy, and of self, by his dealings with the outlaw Robin. As the story unfolds, the show more Sheriff gradually finds himself more comfortable in his skin, better able to communicate his affection to his squire Hugh, and surprised to discover that he loves and is loved by his wife, Lady Eleanor.

Cadnum gives an excellent sense of the brutality of the times, grounding his story firmly in the historical. The tone is frequently reflective, almost as if pondering the borders between the human and the mythological, but also humorous, as in this exchange between Geoffrey and Robin:
"For my part, I wish you were like other thieves."
"More stupid?"
"More joyless." show less

This was a pleasant surprise. I picked this up at the library on a whim, not sure what to expect. Cadnum did an excellent job of taking stories and concepts you're familiar with and turning them on their heads and showing new facets to them. Very very neat. I especially liked the first story retelling Goldilocks and the three Bears.

Cadnum's details of the time period are impressive, and smoothly placed, but his focus on detail and history ends up overshadowing any potential depth in character or plot. Even though the book is narrated in first person, and it seems pretty clear we're supposed to see Edmund grow as he becomes a squire, gains responsibility, and travels, there just doesn't seem to be much depth here, and if you're not engaged with the history itself, you're not going to be engaged with the book.

I read this show more while working with a ninth grade boy who was reading the book for a book report, and it really should have been right up his alley based on his interests in history (this branch of it, in fact); yet, both of us were left less than engaged and, in the end, disappointed. When reading it, I thought perhaps it would engage him in a way it didn't reach me--because of my student's interests, specifically. Instead, I'm only left wondering if this was made a National Book Award Finalist solely based on Cadnum's flair with historical detail.

Well-written and historically detailed? Absolutely. Interesting and engaging as a story with a plot and characters? Not so much. show less

I was hoping for a scary werewolf book, and considering this book had a dark black cover with the intimidating red werewolf on its cover, I thought it would fit the bill. It didn't. If werewolves can be sparkly, this is it. Saint Peter's Wolf depicts them as harmless beasts of nature, and they don't even need to be bitten by another werewolf, but rather come into contact with a set of werewolf fangs embedded in silver.

I also had a few frustrations while writing. The main character thinks show more his lady friend has either died or left him every few pages or so. She could stub her toe on a coffee table and he'd lament her death for several pages, before realizing that there she is, alive and well. The characters also have an obnoxious tendency to dance around the subject they are discussing. Two or three times a character literally said they had something incredibly important to tell the main character, but they 'just couldn't bear to tell him' and forced the reader to wait several chapters before they find out what it is, which is made all the more frustrating when you realize it is something you had pretty much guessed already anyway. It's is like you are eating lunch, halfway through a waitress comes up to you and screams "Oh my goodness stop, I have something critical to tell you!" They then leave you for half an hour, and you look at your meal and wonder what is going on. Then they come out and say 'There's a pickle on your cheeseburger!' Well...okay...thanks...

Despite all this, I still found myself mostly enjoying the novel. I'm not sure why or how, maybe it is because I just finished one of the worst books I've read in a long time, but I don't look back on this with any resentment. It wasn't well-written, but it was suitable brain candy that was good enough to not be terrible. 3 stars. show less