Ring Out Bow Bells

by Cynthia Harnett

Ring Out Bow Bells!

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Childrens

217 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1953

Reviews

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compared to others of Harnett's that I have read, I found this a little more uneven, mainly with the early parts of the book trying to serve two masters: introducing the main plot and characters and also providing thorough and informative descriptions of the London sites.

Harnett had access to a good contemporary guidebook and worked hard to include as much detail from it as she could. At the same time, the beginnings of the complicated story are being set out, with several different groups of characters who will play different roles. Eventually the story wins out, and after some exciting episodes, everything comes together with a great finish. Taken as a whole, it's wonderful - a captivating tale of intrigue along with a ton of historical information, presented in a very believable presentation.

I was struck by how essentially every sentence in the book is packed with authenticity. The language, the items, the locations, the attitudes - nothing seems out of place or false. Harnett very cleverly weaves in other stories of the same time period, such as the well-known tale of Dick Whittington and Shakespeare's Henry V. Those readers with prior knowledge of the period will find this book rewarding, although it is very welcoming to the newcomer as well.

Illustrations by the author are, as usual, very good and help to explain a lot. There were a number of instances where I felt even more little illustrations or diagrams would have been useful.

[scarlettraces · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5) a decorous account of London apprentice life in the early 15th century which is firmly on the side of capitalism and the bosses. i have a lot of sympathy for the Lollards, myself. if it's a choice between rebelling and forming a commonwealth with redistribution of wealth or being burnt at the stake as heretics, i like to think i'd choose the cake option. (apologies to Eddy Izzard.) and after all, it only took the English establishment another century to do pretty much the same thing.

any bias went completely over my head when i was a kid and loved Harnett's books. modern kids would probably be the same, although the fare is more exciting these days.

[Lydia]

Set in 1415 London, Ring Out Bow Bells tells the story of a young lad, Dickon, who is appointed to be a mercer apprentice, to his grief surprise at first, since he was from a grocer family and expected to be a grocer apprentice, but later to his delight.

Ring Out Bow Bells does not deliver much mystery as I expected but it is a good book to learn new things, places, jobs, objects. Dickon's older brother, Adam, is providing substances to an alchemist to concoct the Panacea. Dickon later learns that the alchemist plans were fishy business, which of course Adam is unaware of. Though Adam provides most of the mystery (What does Adam do when he's with the alchemist?!), Dickon provides most of the thrills; he runs, hides, escapes.

The maps and illustration in the book are drawn by the author herself, which are no doubt as good as her words. Cynthia Harnett cleverly depicts scenery, people, as well as objects in pencil drawings. At the end of the book, Harnett leaves her readers a note that tells more about the places she visited when she was writing the book. Interesting. One of the cutest hand drawn picture in the book is the cat Madame Eglantine who belongs to Dick Whittington.

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just read this book for the 2nd or 3rd time, and still enjoyed it. The first time was back in about 1958 !! It is still a stunning story, beautifully told, and though it's children's literature, it's a good adult read.

[Chimene Bateman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastically detailed depiction of early 15th c. London. The protagonists are the three children of a well-to-do family who are close friends of Dick Whittington. One of them becomes an apprentice mercer (fabric merchant), and you learn a lot about apprentices and guilds. Another brother becomes entangled in the plots of the Lollards, who are through-going baddies here; there’s no sense that their rebellion against the Church might have any legitimacy whatsoever! A fun read, and it’s nice to be reading about ‘Whittington, thrice Lord Mayor of London’ at a time when Sadiq Khan has just been re-elected as thrice mayor of London!

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start but became interesting. I didn't feel it resolved things by the end. I learned a lot about apprenticeship and definitely felt for Nan as a girl in this time period.

*Beatings were common, by their grandfather, master they apprenticed to, rival prentice groups.

[DocNora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Memorable and atmospheric. Brings the period to life and you don't w a nt it to end.

[WSL Library]

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