Sonderbooks Book Review of Talking to Dragons

Reviewed September 13, 2005.
Magic Carpet Books, 2003. First published in 1985. 272 pages.
Available at Sembach Library (JF WRE).
Sonderbooks Stand-out 2005 (#3, Young Adult and Children's Fantasy Old Favorites)

I’ve been reading The Enchanted Forest Chronicles to my eleven-year-old son, and we finally completed all four books. I find it intriguing that the fourth and final book was actually published before the first three. My son and I thought we might have enjoyed reading it first and finding out many details along with the main character, instead of knowing what his task would be because of the third book, which presented the problem that Daystar’s quest had to solve.

Daystar has grown up in a little cottage just outside the Enchanted Forest with his mother. She has taught him all sorts of interesting facts and skills, for example that you should always be polite to dragons. One day a wizard turns up, whom his mother melts. Soon after, she tells Daystar that it is time for him to go on a quest. She gives him a sword and tells him to go into the Enchanted Forest and not come back until he’s found out why he had to leave.

Along the way, Daystar falls in with a young fire-witch named Shiara. They meet a witch named Morwen, whom we knew from the earlier books in the series. He learns that his sword is called The Sword of the Sleeping King and he needs to get to the castle in the center of the Enchanted Forest.

This book is a nice capstone to the series. We’ve got another fun and adventurous story, playing on the stereotypical fairy tale and the hero’s quest.

Reviews of other books by Patricia C. Wrede:
Dealing with Dragons (Book 1)
Searching for Dragons (Book 2)
Calling on Dragons (Book 3)
The Book of Enchantments
Thirteenth Child
Across the Great Barrier
Sorcery and Cecilia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot
The Grand Tour
The Mislaid Magician
The Seven Towers

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Book Reviews by Sondra Eklund

******Talking to Dragons*

by Patricia C. Wrede