This book was pretty easy read with enough ongoing adventure to keep things moving at a decent pace. There’s a lot of “justice shall triumph moments!” which were a little corny, but I enjoyed. Also, it had the word whelmed, which I don’t believe I’ve seen in a book before, so that was exciting. (My childhood was built on the wisdom of the movie 10 Things I Hate About You, in which there is a very deep conversation about being "whelmed", so I've been primed for years.)
Naively, I did not expect all the events to be leading up to the signing of the Magna Carta. (I do realize it’s fictionalized, but the history refresher was nice.) And I quite liked that the star of the show, Cedric, was not our narrator.
( )

Narrated by Cedric's comrade-in-arms, Richard of Mountjoy, this book tells the story of the title character, a brave and valiant youth. It takes place in medieval times, when King Richard the Lionhearted was king and into the time when Prince John took over the throne. Cedric shows time and again his noble ways and bravery; he often fights for the rights of the common people, going against powerful leaders and friends in the process.

It kind of reminded me of something like Robin Hood, and I liked that the characters were young. The only not-so-great thing was the number of battle scenes--they were pretty boring in my opinion. I kind of skimmed those parts. But I finished, and I thought the end had a nice little surprise for the reader. I'd read it if you can find a copy, it's a nice story and a Newbery honor book from 1922, the first year they gave out the award; plus it's super-hard to find. ( )

Published in 1921, and chosen as a Newbery Honor Book in 1922, the first year that the Newbery Medal was awarded, Cedric the Forester is long out-of-print, and exceedingly difficult to come by. With not a copy for sale on-line, nor in my county's library system, I had to use the Inter-Library Loan program to request one, and it eventually came from Rochester - more than 300 miles away! Thank goodness for ILL, and for librarians!

Narrated by Sir Dickon (Richard) Mountjoy - a twelfth-century Norman nobleman whose family lands lie in the Western Marches of England - it details his lifelong friendship with the Saxon yeoman, Cedric of Pelham Wood, and their many exciting adventures together. Opening when Sir Dickon is fifteen, and his father is departing to serve the king (Henry II) in his campaign in Scotland, the narrative plunges headlong into fast-paced adventure - never slackening until the conclusion of the novel.

With Castle Mountjoy besieged by an old enemy in the very first chapter, and a surprising "ghostly" visitation in the second, the eponymous Cedric only enters the story in chapter three, when he and the narrator have a rather unfortunate first meeting in Pelham Wood. Reconciled to one another after Cedric saves Sir Dickon's life, the two young men become boon companions, and many adventures follow. From the terrible Outlaws of Blackpool, led by the bloodthirsty Monkslayer, to the fierce Welsh warriors under Prince Rhys, Dickon and Cedric have no shortage of enemies to fight, as they grow to manhood on the battlefield. Their final adventure, as grown men, comes with their involvement in the rebellion that leads to the signing of the great Magna Carta.

Set in the same time period traditionally assigned to the legendary Robin Hood, who is mentioned several times in the text, always in connection with skill in archery, Cedric the Forester features the same sort of Norman-Saxon tensions that are so prominent in tales of the outlaw of Sherwood. Bernard Marshall, whose consciously "archaic" language is somewhat reminiscent of Howard Pyle (lots of "thinkest thous"), is clearly a believer in the virtuous Saxon, and while the Mountjoys and others of the Normans are good people, it is clearly the "salt of the earth" Cedric - a fierce believer in the rights of all men, be they noblemen or thralls - who is meant to be the hero.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed Marshall's story, as I had somehow internalized the idea, expressed in various venues, that most of the earlier Newbery Honor Books weren't worth reading. Whatever the general case may be, Cedric the Forester was an immensely engaging and entertaining book, and I tore through it. Marshall's language may have annoyed in a lesser author, but felt perfectly natural to me here. Then again, I grew up on Henry Gilbert's rather old-fashioned Robin Hood.

The depiction of the Welsh Prince Rhys as a "barbarian chieftain" will no doubt rankle with many contemporary readers, but I've certainly seen worse, when it comes to anachronistic nationalism and social views in vintage children's literature. I also wondered a bit about the chronology, as Henry II's major campaign in Scotland occurred in the 1170s, and the Welsh uprising under Prince Rhys in the 1190s, a period of time covered in three or four years in Cedric the Forester.

But despite these concerns, the book was well-written, well-paced, and well-told, and I kept wondering at the fact that no one has thought to reprint it! It is worth mentioning, moreover, that the engravings which decorate the book, done (I believe) by J. Scott Williams, greatly enhanced my pleasure in reading. In sum: I have come away with a desire to read more of Bernard Marshall's historical fiction for children - I guess it's time to try another Inter-Library Loan. ( )

Swords, cross-bows, and, eventually, jingoism. A suitable early Newbery honor book: adventure with a patriotic message.