Mr. Cornwell,

Thank you very much for The Saxon Warrior Chronicles! I’m a British Literature teacher, and I teach “The Last Kingdom” to my 11th graders after Beowulf and before Chaucer. It gives them a much-needed taste of contemporary fiction, and it also gives them a feel for the lifestyle they learn about in Beowulf. We love your descriptions of battles in particular (I teach at an all-boys school). You really have a knack for showing the scope of battle as well as the individual terror of the shield wall.

I have a question on your sources for the book: Did you take the martyrdom of Edmund from the Anglo Saxon Primer?

We look at the more, um, canonical, version and compare and contrast points of view. It makes for a wonderful exercise.

Sorry to bother you, but the students love your work, and many go on to read the rest of the series!

Any thoughts about a novel about the Battle of Hastings? It would be much more convenient for my course syllabus. :-)

Best of luck, and thanks so much for your body of work!

Mark Quinn
English Teacher
Salesianum School
Wilmington, DE