Sadly (and perhaps remissly) Katherine Rundell – winner of the Blue Peter book award 2014 for best story – did not include any of Rosemary Sutcliff’s characters in her recent ’10 of the best orphans’ at The Guardian’s children’s books site. She might have chosen Beric in Outcast, Jestyn in Blood Feud, Randall the dog-boy in Knight’s Fee, Hugh Copplestone in Brother Dusty-Feet. (And what are the others I have forgotten?).
She chose:
- Mowgli, The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
- Cinderella
- Cat Chant, Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones
- Anne, Anne of Green Gables by L M Montgomery
- Alex Rider, Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
- Harry, Harry Potter by JK Rowling
- Lyra, His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman
- Sophie, The BFG by Roald Dahl
- Peter, Peter Pan by J M Barrie
- The Fossil Sisters, Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield