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Flame-Colored Taffeta
Damaris Crocker, a young girl living in smuggling country, whose dearest wish is for a flame-colored taffeta petticoat, works with her friend Peter and Genty Small the Wise Woman to save the life of a wounded young man brought to them by the smugglers
144 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
About the author
Rosemary Sutcliff
111 books698 followersRosemary Sutcliff, CBE (1920-1992) was a British novelist, best known as a writer of highly acclaimed historical fiction. Although primarily a children's author, the quality and depth of her writing also appeals to adults. She once commented that she wrote "for children of all ages, from nine to ninety."
Born in West Clandon, Surrey, Sutcliff spent her early youth in Malta and other naval bases where her father was stationed as a naval officer. She contracted Still's Disease when she was very young and was confined to a wheelchair for most of her life. Due to her chronic sickness, she spent the majority of her time with her mother, a tireless storyteller, from whom she learned many of the Celtic and Saxon legends that she would later expand into works of historical fiction. Her early schooling being continually interrupted by moving house and her disabling condition, Sutcliff didn't learn to read until she was nine, and left school at fourteen to enter the Bideford Art School, which she attended for three years, graduating from the General Art Course. She then worked as a painter of miniatures.
Rosemary Sutcliff began her career as a writer in 1950 with The Chronicles of Robin Hood. She found her voice when she wrote The Eagle of the Ninth in 1954. In 1959, she won the Carnegie Medal for The Lantern Bearers and was runner-up in 1972 with Tristan and Iseult. In 1974 she was highly commended for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. Her The Mark of the Horse Lord won the first Phoenix Award in 1985.
Sutcliff lived for many years in Walberton near Arundel, Sussex. In 1975 she was appointed OBE for services to Children's Literature and promoted to CBE in 1992. She wrote incessantly throughout her life, and was still writing on the morning of her death. She never married.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rosema...
Born in West Clandon, Surrey, Sutcliff spent her early youth in Malta and other naval bases where her father was stationed as a naval officer. She contracted Still's Disease when she was very young and was confined to a wheelchair for most of her life. Due to her chronic sickness, she spent the majority of her time with her mother, a tireless storyteller, from whom she learned many of the Celtic and Saxon legends that she would later expand into works of historical fiction. Her early schooling being continually interrupted by moving house and her disabling condition, Sutcliff didn't learn to read until she was nine, and left school at fourteen to enter the Bideford Art School, which she attended for three years, graduating from the General Art Course. She then worked as a painter of miniatures.
Rosemary Sutcliff began her career as a writer in 1950 with The Chronicles of Robin Hood. She found her voice when she wrote The Eagle of the Ninth in 1954. In 1959, she won the Carnegie Medal for The Lantern Bearers and was runner-up in 1972 with Tristan and Iseult. In 1974 she was highly commended for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. Her The Mark of the Horse Lord won the first Phoenix Award in 1985.
Sutcliff lived for many years in Walberton near Arundel, Sussex. In 1975 she was appointed OBE for services to Children's Literature and promoted to CBE in 1992. She wrote incessantly throughout her life, and was still writing on the morning of her death. She never married.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rosema...
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
June 24, 2026
Not Sutcliff at her best but still packed full of beautiful descriptions. Very fun reading about 18th century Sussex and my very own Chichester, too 🤩
August 13, 2012
Cover Blurb: This is a cover that could do with a makeover. It’s not bad, but it is a tired cover, nothing terribly exciting about it, though it does say “historical fiction right here!”
What I Liked: Damaris is an adventurous and likable protagonist. It’s true that she doesn’t actually do all that much in the story, but it isn’t because she’s useless; there just isn’t all that much that happens. It’s a novella, remember. Tom’s humor is surprisingly funny; I wasn’t entirely expecting it, and I liked it. And of course Snowball, Damaris’s fat little pony, was adorable.
What I Disliked: Only the fact that it wasn’t longer. So much more could have happened, and I wish more had.
Believability: This Author does an amazing amount of research for her stories; she’s known for it. And she always has a wonderfully detailed Author’s Note for all of her stories that explains what isn’t true or if she has changed the locations of things (which she doesn’t do often). Though only a novella, I got the feeling that she gave the historical aspects of this story as much attention as her others.
Writing Style: Some reviewers (and no, I am not pointing fingers at anyone in particular) complained that Readers would have difficulty getting past all of the long sentences and apostrophes and dashes. They make it sound like the book is difficult to get through. It isn’t. It took me longer to read than it should have because I was distracted that week, but on a normal week it would have only taken me half a day. There is nothing wrong with Sutcliff’s writing style - as usual. I never have anything to complain about with her writing. The sentences are no longer than usual.
Content: None.
Conclusion: My biggest complaint is, definitely, that the story wasn’t longer. It felt like it had so much more that could have happened - and did happen, but in the background. This could have easily gone from a novella to a full-fledged novel. That is my only sorrow. For a novella, the end was satisfying enough, but still - more could have happened.
Recommended Audience: It is appropriate for all ages, both guys and girls would like it, and historical fiction fans will enjoy it.
What I Liked: Damaris is an adventurous and likable protagonist. It’s true that she doesn’t actually do all that much in the story, but it isn’t because she’s useless; there just isn’t all that much that happens. It’s a novella, remember. Tom’s humor is surprisingly funny; I wasn’t entirely expecting it, and I liked it. And of course Snowball, Damaris’s fat little pony, was adorable.
What I Disliked: Only the fact that it wasn’t longer. So much more could have happened, and I wish more had.
Believability: This Author does an amazing amount of research for her stories; she’s known for it. And she always has a wonderfully detailed Author’s Note for all of her stories that explains what isn’t true or if she has changed the locations of things (which she doesn’t do often). Though only a novella, I got the feeling that she gave the historical aspects of this story as much attention as her others.
Writing Style: Some reviewers (and no, I am not pointing fingers at anyone in particular) complained that Readers would have difficulty getting past all of the long sentences and apostrophes and dashes. They make it sound like the book is difficult to get through. It isn’t. It took me longer to read than it should have because I was distracted that week, but on a normal week it would have only taken me half a day. There is nothing wrong with Sutcliff’s writing style - as usual. I never have anything to complain about with her writing. The sentences are no longer than usual.
Content: None.
Conclusion: My biggest complaint is, definitely, that the story wasn’t longer. It felt like it had so much more that could have happened - and did happen, but in the background. This could have easily gone from a novella to a full-fledged novel. That is my only sorrow. For a novella, the end was satisfying enough, but still - more could have happened.
Recommended Audience: It is appropriate for all ages, both guys and girls would like it, and historical fiction fans will enjoy it.
February 4, 2018
A female main character! Woot woot!
April 30, 2018
Not bad at all, I say. Not bad at all. Pretty good actually.
September 25, 2022
A lesser Sutcliff work—no character arcs here, nor real plot complexity—but it still charms with its sharply observed descriptions.
Read
December 25, 2022Twelve-year-old Damaris finds an injured man in the woods near her secret hideout - is he a smuggler, or a spy for the Jacobites? Damaris, her friend Pete, and the village's local healer Genty work to get Tom well enough in time for him to get back on his way while avoiding capture.
This is a rare girl POV from Sutcliff! I enjoyed Damaris a lot, she's entirely too trusting but she's also very clever and resourceful. She's sneaking out windows and rescuing prisoners and in one great scene threatening grown men! This is one of her more child-focused books and it is overall free of heartbreak, and quite delightful.
This is a rare girl POV from Sutcliff! I enjoyed Damaris a lot, she's entirely too trusting but she's also very clever and resourceful. She's sneaking out windows and rescuing prisoners and in one great scene threatening grown men! This is one of her more child-focused books and it is overall free of heartbreak, and quite delightful.
October 8, 2021
Wonderfully written story...quite suspenseful! For Middle aged kids to Adults.
A terrific story . A resourceful heroine and fully three dimensional characters.Beautifully written. A fast, exciting read. Some tingly and suspenseful moments. I love this woman's writing l Cannot wait to read ALL her books...hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
A terrific story . A resourceful heroine and fully three dimensional characters.Beautifully written. A fast, exciting read. Some tingly and suspenseful moments. I love this woman's writing l Cannot wait to read ALL her books...hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
June 13, 2017
Quick read. Again with the smugglers - for some reason I've been plagued with them recently: Moonfleet, The Midnight Folk, and now this.
February 27, 2019
Not that good. The story was not very exciting or believable, and it had hardly anything to do with Jacobites and Hanoverians. The witchcraft part was also a bit weird.
Read
March 5, 2024Enjoyed very much.
June 16, 2026
Short novel or novella with, for a change, a female protagonist. The plot is minimal but the descriptions are excellent. There are minor intimations of supernatural elements.
March 5, 2025
This is one of those children’s books that's also suitable for adults. This one, however, didn't appeal to me as much at Rosemary Sutcliff's other books.
Set in the 1750s, young Damaris finds a wounded man whom she presumes to be a smuggler. With a little help from her friends, she manages to hide, help, and heal him.
All the ingredients are there for an exciting story but for me it turned out to be lacking in thrills, action, suspense, and drama. Nothing major happens.
It's not a boring story, though, and the author does a good job of placing the reader in eighteenth-century England. The characters are all vivid.
Worth reading, but not one I'd come back to.
Set in the 1750s, young Damaris finds a wounded man whom she presumes to be a smuggler. With a little help from her friends, she manages to hide, help, and heal him.
All the ingredients are there for an exciting story but for me it turned out to be lacking in thrills, action, suspense, and drama. Nothing major happens.
It's not a boring story, though, and the author does a good job of placing the reader in eighteenth-century England. The characters are all vivid.
Worth reading, but not one I'd come back to.
May 22, 2013
WHOEVER HE WAS--WHATEVER HE WAS--SHE WAS ON HIS SIDE!
Twelve-year-old Damaris is wise for her years, since she has been raised along the southern English coast where smugglers make frequent runs. She knows not to ask certain questions which will embarrass her father, when she can use her eyes and ears to interpret the activities of the Fair Traders (as they are called). Her best friend in her childhood adventures is Peter, the vicar's son, a loyal and eager comrade. They even have a private playhouse, a ramshackle lost cottage half falling in, which she names "Jouous Gard" after Sir Lancelot's castle.
One day after a nocturnal run, she discovers a young stranger lying near their cottage, badly wounded and barely conscious. Mentally claiming him as her own and adopting his cause--whatever it might be--Damaris enlists Peter's aid to carry him into their hideout, to sneak food and provide company. They realize that they need adult medical skill to remove the bullet from "the Smuggler's" knee, so Damaris turns to the Wise Woman (polite name for an old woman wiih knowledge of herbs and often darker matters). Genty offers her services and her home to help this unknown young man, whom even in his delirium Daramris considers romantic.
This is one adventure she will not share with her family. The only name he gives is Tom Wildgoose, but what is he carrying so closely guarded in an oilskin bag around his neck? Could he really be a smuggler or is he part of the cargo? Whose side is he on: King George, France or Scotland? None of that matters to Damaris, who risks a great deal to save him.
The title refers to her girlhood wish for a scarlet petticoat like the one the gypsy girl wore when she danced for the community last season. A flaming piece of material frippery which she does Not need, which would have shocked her father and aunt. But few adults understand a girl's dream of freedom and joy of living, which such a petticoat represents for her. This is a light novel of adventure and mild intrigue, which will appeal to elementary children--especially the parts about deceiving parents in order to achieve a noble goal. Not to mention risking her soul by getting involved in the Black Arts. Was she right to place her trust in a total stranger who could prove a traitor to her country or a threat to her body? Was helping him worth the real dangers she willingly undertook on his behalf? Twentieth Century Children's writers states: "In Rosemary Sutcliff's hands, the children's historical novel has gained passion, insight and depth." A truly enjoyable read.
(August 17, 2011. I welcome dialogue with teachers.)
Twelve-year-old Damaris is wise for her years, since she has been raised along the southern English coast where smugglers make frequent runs. She knows not to ask certain questions which will embarrass her father, when she can use her eyes and ears to interpret the activities of the Fair Traders (as they are called). Her best friend in her childhood adventures is Peter, the vicar's son, a loyal and eager comrade. They even have a private playhouse, a ramshackle lost cottage half falling in, which she names "Jouous Gard" after Sir Lancelot's castle.
One day after a nocturnal run, she discovers a young stranger lying near their cottage, badly wounded and barely conscious. Mentally claiming him as her own and adopting his cause--whatever it might be--Damaris enlists Peter's aid to carry him into their hideout, to sneak food and provide company. They realize that they need adult medical skill to remove the bullet from "the Smuggler's" knee, so Damaris turns to the Wise Woman (polite name for an old woman wiih knowledge of herbs and often darker matters). Genty offers her services and her home to help this unknown young man, whom even in his delirium Daramris considers romantic.
This is one adventure she will not share with her family. The only name he gives is Tom Wildgoose, but what is he carrying so closely guarded in an oilskin bag around his neck? Could he really be a smuggler or is he part of the cargo? Whose side is he on: King George, France or Scotland? None of that matters to Damaris, who risks a great deal to save him.
The title refers to her girlhood wish for a scarlet petticoat like the one the gypsy girl wore when she danced for the community last season. A flaming piece of material frippery which she does Not need, which would have shocked her father and aunt. But few adults understand a girl's dream of freedom and joy of living, which such a petticoat represents for her. This is a light novel of adventure and mild intrigue, which will appeal to elementary children--especially the parts about deceiving parents in order to achieve a noble goal. Not to mention risking her soul by getting involved in the Black Arts. Was she right to place her trust in a total stranger who could prove a traitor to her country or a threat to her body? Was helping him worth the real dangers she willingly undertook on his behalf? Twentieth Century Children's writers states: "In Rosemary Sutcliff's hands, the children's historical novel has gained passion, insight and depth." A truly enjoyable read.
(August 17, 2011. I welcome dialogue with teachers.)
August 19, 2015
Maybe I'm the wrong target audience for this book. But having grown up on historical fiction like Katherine Paterson's Jacob Have I Loved and Elizabeth George Speare's The Witch of Blackbird Pond, I found Flame-Colored Taffeta disappointingly without plot or character development. Nothing unexpected happens in the story: Every potential roadblock that is thrown up is resolved immediately before the next one appears. The characters are flat and rather stock in nature; there is the young heroine, her trusty hero friend, a father, a maiden aunt, a smuggler, an old crone/wisewoman/herbalist, and a spoiled gentleman's son. None of them act outside the trope they are meant to embody. One consequence of this is that the book pretty much wholly misses out on the possibility of making Damaris into a true heroine, one who acts beyond the traditional scope of her femininity (both in terms of historical accuracy and in terms of the literary trope that she fulfils). Instead, this is yet another book where even though the girl is the central focus, it is her male friend who is the most active.
At times, the writing is prolix (if a single sentence last 5 lines, you have too many adjectives), and despite being the comma-lover that I am, there are too many.
At times, the writing is prolix (if a single sentence last 5 lines, you have too many adjectives), and despite being the comma-lover that I am, there are too many.
September 22, 2007
Twelve-year-old Damaris, who lives on a seaside Sussex farm, discovers a young man who has been shot in the leg. She and 13-year-old Peter hide the man, who calls himself Tom Wildgoose, in their secret meeting placea half-ruined cottage in the forest. At first Damaris thinks Tom is a smuggler, but later she learns he is carrying papers from Bonnie Prince Charlie in France to his London supporters. Tom is captured when he rescues Damaris and her pet fox from a pack of foxhounds. But Damaris gets Tom freed by enlisting the aid of village wisewoman Genty. Under the very noses of royal customs officers, Damaris and Peter get Tom off on the road to London. Years later, Damaris knows that Tom is alive and safe when he sends her, as a wedding present, what she has always desiredflame-colored taffeta to wear as a petticoat. It's a fitting and satisfying resolution to this historically based tale of intrigue.
July 16, 2010
My first foray into the works of one of Megan Whalen Turner's favorite authors, Rosemary Sutcliff, and what can I say, girlfriend can tell a story. Flame-Colored Taffeta is about a 12 year-old girl in England in the late 1700s who finds a mysterious young man wounded in the nearby wood. Is he part of the smuggling ring running rampant in those parts or is he something worse and what should Damaris do about it? The telling is simple and concise but rich in historical detail and characterization. A great one to read aloud to children.
January 3, 2013
More of a true children's book than the other Sutcliffs I've read, and set much later, in the 18th century. Damaris is a likeable protagonist, and the story is good, if nothing extraordinary. I particularly liked Genty, who is nothing at all like Ancret from Knight's fee but who is still the same archetype of the Wise Woman.
July 4, 2007
Rosemary Sutcliff specializes in historical novels of old England. She usually focuses on pre-Renaissance settings, but this one is an exception, set during the era of Jacobite plots in the 1700s. Somehow, Sutcliff is able to create characters and stories that are vivid, beautiful and real, even when they are set in unfamiliar times and places.
October 21, 2010
Greatly enjoyed this book. My biggest complaint was that there wasn't more of it, but it's probably just right for a children's book. I enjoyed the author's writing so much that I've ordered three more of her titles.
February 10, 2015
gr 6-8 130 pgs
When 12 year old Damaris' and Peter's secret hideout is invaded by an injured stranger, Damaris is determined to help him. She knows that he could be a smuggler or a spy, but wants to help him anyway. When Tom is captured, Damaris is determined to find a way to free him.
When 12 year old Damaris' and Peter's secret hideout is invaded by an injured stranger, Damaris is determined to help him. She knows that he could be a smuggler or a spy, but wants to help him anyway. When Tom is captured, Damaris is determined to find a way to free him.
February 16, 2016
This book was a cute little story, but there were so many names mentioned that you didn't know whose to remember and it was just a little slow a parts. I think there was more description and small stories then there was big action.
June 2, 2012
I liked this 18th century view of the same place were so many of the Roman Britain novels take place with smuggling and Jacobites added!
January 15, 2013
Damaris and Peter share an adventure as they look after a mysterious, wounded young man--just as the blurb says. It's well-written and a fine read. Not my favorite Sutcliff, though.
March 21, 2014
Cool :). About smugglers in 18th-century England; adventurous, sweet. I wasn't sure what to think, exactly, about the whole thing with the effigy, but definitely enjoyed it.
April 3, 2016
Lovely, like all Sutcliff. Also set in one of my favourite (and less popular) historical periods.
Yay for pragmatic marriages!
Yay for pragmatic marriages!
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews