Men of Iron

Written by Howard Pyle

Narrated by Robert Whitfield

In England’s days of chivalry, an unjust family dishonor forced young Myles Falworth to make his fortune as best he might. This is the story of how he rose to knighthood and vanquished enemies in the dangerous days when men seemed made of iron.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Blackstone Audio
• Release date: Jan 1, 2006
• ISBN: 9780786124213

Howard Pyle

Howard Pyle (1853-1911) was a celebrated artist, author, and teacher -- and a primary figure in the history of children's literature. Not only did he guide and inspire such artistic talents as N. C. Wyeth, Maxfield Parrish, and Jessie Willcox Smith, but he was also a master storyteller in his own right. The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, Pepper & Salt, and The Wonder Clock are among the many stories and folktales that he wrote and illustrated.

Reviews for Men of Iron

[jeffv_19 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

A long, long time ago...grammar school, I believe, we were told that it is generally considered bad form to attempt to write in accented dialog. The exception was if you were very, very good.Howard Pyle is not very good.I'm pretty sure he made up a bunch of his own words by adding -eth at the end of nearly every verb in character dialog. This was distracting to no end. The story, set in medieval times and focusing on squires and the knights they serve, was completely lost in this lame attempt at contemporary dialog.I like reading Shakespeare. Pyle is no Shakespeare. Instead of period flavor, the result is complete frustration.

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't know that this book was as old as "the White Company", but they hang together in my mind. Miles Falworth seeks to recover his family's honour. And of course he does. The 1950's movie "Black Shield of Falworth" was about what you'd expect.

[chris_el-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

You really need to read the unabridged edition. There is another one that was watered down to be easier to understand. Don't read that one!

This would make a great movie. It reminds me of a cross between A Knights Tale (movie) and The Hedge Knight (book).

[michael_rose-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I was 12 or 13 when I read this. I don't think I could properly appreciate it at the time, culturally speaking. It offers interesting insight into life at the time, through an act of historical fiction. What I noticed most about the book, at the time, was the author's writing style. He could write a sentence the length of an entire paragraph, and yet have it be grammatically correct.

[jackmassa · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyable YA adventure, set at the height of the age of chivalry, but written with the stong moral force (and occasional moralizing) of the Victorian era.

[harrymacdonald · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If Howard Pyle were a corporation, he could have declared some extra dividends simply on the basis of my perfervid consumption of any of his works which I could find "yesterday, when I was young". This rousing tale of young Mile's Falworth's quest for knighthood and his rightful place in society is a classic of what was once called "improving fiction for boys", meaning, despite the odd phrasing, that the boys would be improved by the fiction (the fictionb was already good). It doesn't really matter that much of the grit of medievsal life is swept aside in the narrative: the historical info which IS vouchsafed put the "YA" historical fiction of our day to shame.

[momma2_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Blake said this book was better than Robin Hood because in addition to all the action there were also "girls". I had to laugh as he explained that there was even a secret rendezvous and that the hero got "busted". Ah well, what is a story about knights without a damsel or two, right?

[mrslee_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favorite story of knights in shining armour. This is the story of a young man who must earn his station in life. His ability to do this is complicated by politics, physical hardship and love. A great description of the process and levels of becoming a knight, as well as some of the complexities of Medeival England.