Eragon, written by Christopher Paolini, is about a 15 year old boy named Eragon who lives in a town named Carvahall, in Alagaesia. Eragon is a farm boy and one day while exploring in the mountains he discovers a magical stone. This magical stone soon hatches, and to Eragons amazement a dragon, which is very rare, is now his. The dragon, Saphira, is sought after by Lord Galbatorix, who sends the Ra'zac in search of Saphira and the new dragon rider Eragon. As Eragon and Saphira hide in the forests of Alagaesia from the Ra'zac, his Uncle is killed and his farm burned down. Saphira and Eragon create a bond and relationship that allow them to communicate with each other, and even heal each other. Eragon's long journey to find help at the Varden takes him through many new places and more troubles arise as he meets new people and encounters new enemies. Can help be found before the elite Ra'zac find and kill Eragon and Saphira? This book is a young adult fantasy book. Many readers, probably along the lines of middle school, who enjoy fantasy should definitely read Eragon, which is book 1 in a 4 book series. It has good readability and keeps the reader drawn in, the book is very hard to put down, the suspense of situations will keep the pages turning. The author uses text that is easy to visualize and that helps the reader become a part of the book. Some of the towns, cities, landmarks and vocabulary of the book are hard to remember and are easy to be confused by, but the glossary in the book and the maps are very useful and helpful to limit confusion. This book is highly recommended to any who like to read fantasy, not just middle school, young adults.
This is a great example of books that might meet the interest of a wide variety of readers. My son, Bryce, enjoyed this book in 4th grade. I agree with you that the use of maps helps the reader a lot as the names are a bit confusing at times.
ReplyDeleteI really love this book. I am a big fantasy/sci fi fan and dragons are very close to dinosaurs! I also liked the movie but as usual prefer the book. I agree a child who is drawn to this genre is drawn into the book and taken on the adventure of Eragon and Saphira. I agree the maps are helpful in navigating through the book/adventure.
ReplyDeleteThis is a book that I have seen a few kids read in the classroom during my first practicum. I have heard from students how good this book is, and now I really want to read it. I think this might be a book to include in a classroom library depending on the grade.
ReplyDeleteDid you know that Christopher Paolini was only 15 when he wrote the first draft of Eragon? I was really impressed when I heard that (http://www.alagaesia.com/author.php).
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