Common Sense Note
This is meant for fun, not literary discussion, but it does raise the issue of extinction caused by human encroachment.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Matt Berman
This was actually Funke's first book in Germany, but only now, after the success of her two other books, is it being offered in English. Despite its excessive length, it's aimed at a younger audience than her other books, with a simple, straightforward plot, one-dimensional characters, and a gentle approach that, while exciting, eschews violence. The villain is all bark and bad temper, most of the characters they meet are helpful and kind, and the ending is predictable, but satisfying.
It reads like a middle-grade novel -- well, all right, three middle-grade novels. Ambitious young readers will want to read this themselves, but it would be a great extended bedtime read-aloud -- exciting but not too scary, humorous, with short chapters, and plenty of cliffhangers.
From the Book:
"Come on out!" spat Sorrel again. "Or do I have to come and fetch you?"
There was some more rustling, and then a human boy crawled out from the crates. Sorrel retreated in alarm. When the boy rose to his feet he was a good deal taller than she was. He stared incredulously at the brownie girl. And then he saw the dragon.
Firedrake's scales still shone like silver in spite of the canal water, and in this small space he seemed enormous. Neck bent, he was gazing down at the boy in astonishment.
Plot Summary:
In a valley in Scotland the last of the silver dragons hide from the encroachment of humans. But now this last valley is being invaded too. Firedrake, a young dragon, sets out to find the legendary ancestral home of the dragons, the Rim of Heaven, high in the Himalayas, where dragons can be safe and undisturbed forever. Accompanying him are Sorrel, a crabby brownie, and eventually Ben, an orphan, and Twigleg, a homunculus who may be hiding a treacherous secret.
Following a map drawn by a rat, the trio trek across Europe and the Middle East, heading for India. But they are followed by the spies of Nettlebrand, an artificial golden dragon created to destroy all dragons, who also wants to know where the Rim of Heaven lies, so he can finish the task he was created for.
Related Books:
Other Books by Cornelia Funke
The Thief Lord
Inkheart
More Dragons
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
The Book of Dragons by E. Nesbit
Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
Here There Be Dragons by Jane Yolen
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
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