Rating:  Summary: An Impressive first Novel. Review: First off, I give huge kudos to Mr. Paolini for writing and publishing this book at age 16. When most people his age are caught up in acne, cliques, and the opposite sex, he has shown the fortitude, talent and incredible patience required to complete a novel. (Which for those of you who have never tried to write a nove...it is a Herculian task in the first place.)With all that said, Mr. Paolini's book, while good and worthwhile for you to PURCHASE, is not the second coming of Tolkien (then again who is?). While he does manage to spin an interesting tale full Elves, Dwarves, Dragons, mentors, wizards, shades, etc...his actual writing suffers from being slightly inconsistant. The motivation of his characters sometime seem somewhat forced upon them rather than developing organically. I also felt occasionally rushed in on way or the other rather in terms of plot as well. The novel also suffers from the derivitive nature of the world he has chosen to create. For those of us who have read a lot of Fantasy novels...his world is perhaps just a bit too close to other novels we have read. (Specifically the Dragon Riders of Pern books by Anne McCaffery and perhaps a bit from The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan.) Granted it is hard to come up with anything completely "new" but in retrospect it would be nice to have seen Mr. Paolini stretch a bit more and really put more of a definitive stamp on his world. (Sherri Tepper is a brillian example of an author who creates worlds unlike any other. Grass, Raising of the Stones, and Plague of Angels are great examples.) For those who do not read much Fantasy, I suspect this book will be a nice introduction to the the genre. For those Fantasy junkies...it is a good and worthwhile read. (4 stars or 7.5 out of 10). I will say this...I look forward to Mr. Paolini's development as a writer and suspect his pen will be come sharper and more distinct as the years go by. I wish him much luck and good fortune...now get the sequal out already. :) For those of you looking for other worthwhile Fantasy reads, might I suggest the following authors. 1. Tolkien (duh!) 2. George R. R. Martin (Game of Thrones, etc) 3. Peirs Anthony (Split Infinity and early Xanth novels) 4. Micheal Ende (The Neverending Story - 10x better than the movie, and the movie wasn't bad.) 5. Sherri S. Tepper (Grass, and Raising of the Stones) 6. J.K. Rowlings (Harry Potter - The movies don't do them justice) 7. Philip Pullman (Golden Compass, etc) 8. Orson Scott Card (Seventh son, etc) 9. Terry Brooks (Shanara Series...although Wishsong is the ultimate gem.) 10. C.S. Lewis (Narnia Chronicles)
Rating:  Summary: Awesome book! Review: Chris was at my school today. In the beginning, I went, yeah, yeah, yeah. By the end of the period I wanted to meet the author of my favorite book and ask him a question. I read Eragon twice over January and February. I had never met an author before. Awesome book!
Rating:  Summary: the dragon book Review: Eragon is the best new book I've read for many a long fantasy deprived month (not year I read rather a lot) it is the perfect swashbuckling fantasy novel for any one from a crazed with waiting harry potter fan (its better) to just a person on the look out for the next great story. Eragon is a book for some what mature audiences as there is a bit of violence and a little romance, not to deep mind you but just enough suggested reading age is (maturely) 14and older although you so called adults might scoff at reading a so called "young adult" book I think you should give it a try. Set in the land of (I'm probably going to murder this) Aglastia under the rule of a tyrant king after the fall of the now legendary dragon riders the story starts in a dark wood the shade's ambush fails and the elf maiden sends the "strange blue rock" to... the next chapter !wherein we meet our hero for the rest of the book Eragon (oh not the same as the title I wonder if he is destined for great things?!) who misses the deer but picks up the "strange blue rock" sent from the previous chapter this turns out to be an egg that hatches into a baby dragon. But you knew that if you read the back of the book.( Now don't lie even I Kate The Great reads the back of the book)the baby dragon named sapharia by eragorn can talk to eragorn threw his mind eragorn goes to talk dragon lore with the local story teller Brom, whom I get the feeling knows more than he says, and the story takes off from there. If you expect to tell you more of the plot you will be disappointed as I want you to buy this book at your local independent bookstore as opposed to this website. I will assure you that in all my years of reading I have never found any thing better. This book tops my personal favorite fantasy booklist and if you enjoyed it I think you would also like sabriel, lerial, and abhorsen, (again sorry for the misspell) by Garth Nix the his dark materiasl trilogy; The golden compass, The subtle knife, and The amber spy glass by Phillip Pullman the harry potter books are also acceptable if not as good however I do tend to view the books threw a rather jaundiced eye as I have been wait in to long for miss Rowling to get her rear in gear and finish the books before the movies! Oh dear me sorry for the rant but I get a little worked up about this. Another of my favorite authors is Diana Wynne Jones and her book dark lord of derkholm is a riot! (It is a parody of LOTR) So again it is more than likely that you will like this book so get moving! You will love eragon I do.
Rating:  Summary: Best Fantasy work of the Decade Review: I was highly impressed with this work. I received the book as a gift. I was told that the author was from the same town where I grew up and that it came highly recommended by others. I was not disapointed. The book is a fantastic read from beginning to end. I am looking forward to the next book with high anticipation. I don't want to give anything away so i'll not discuss the books content. Give it a try, if you like fantasy, you will love this book.
Rating:  Summary: Hrothgar the Mighty gives his blessing from Kleb Intermediat Review: I Hrothgar the Mighty do bestoy upon Christopher Paolini, a full coat of chain mail armor to slay enemies, Christopher has disguished himself at Kleb Intermediate, by selling 241books to my fellow students. Eragon is everywhere, in the halls, the bathrooms, lockers, tables, and backpacks. Everyone is talking about Eragon and the three presentations Chris did for us. I loved seeing him here in Kleb Intermediate, Spring, Texas. Cooool job dude! Hrothgar the Mighty and his hammer!
Rating:  Summary: Action-packed fantasy adventure Review: Young Mr. Paolini has come up with an enjoyable, fast-paced adventure through a detailed fatasy world. My major complaint is that the book is, perhaps, too fast-paced. I found myself wishing that he'd spent more time on character delevopment and motivation. In the last quarter of the book some of the pieces began to fit together, I hope that in the next book the characters' motivatons and history will be fleshed out further.
Rating:  Summary: Best Book of the Year! Review: Eragon is a masterpiece. Every word, every page, every chapter is woven together in a great tapestry, a flawless portrait conveying meaning, purpose, and divine joy of life and friendship . Christipher Paolini has inspired me to write more. A truly ingenious work of art.
Rating:  Summary: Eragon (Great new book) Review: Of all the books I read last year this one was the most exciting. The only 3 to come close were by some pretty famous authors like Melanie Rawn, John Marco, and Robert Jordan. The difference was this book was just so hard for me to put down that I read it in just 3 evenings. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a little something new!
Rating:  Summary: Sceptic convinced Review: One of the presents I received for Christmas this year was Eragon -- complete with personalized autographed signature from the author! My sister was very proud of her gift for me and assured me it was wonderful and would be a collector's item one day. I wasn't so sure - the book is self-published, and the author so young. I'm a voracious reader, but I'd like to think that my taste is discerning, whether I'm reading fantasy or other genres. Tolkien introduced me to the wonders of reading 20+ years ago, when I was in the second grade and I credit him with the fact that I actually have been consistently disappointed with many fantasy novels, because so many simply don't have believable characters, cultures, and/or environments. Other than a few select authors, I actually have come to avoid the genre (for the curious -- Tolkien is a god; I enjoy C.S. Lewis; Anne McCaffrey and her collaborations; Robert Jordan; Elizabeth Kerner; Patricia McKillip ... Ursula K. LeGuin, The Wrinkle in Time books, etc., and do enjoy J.K. Rowling). So I began Eragon fully expecting to be disappointed, and to have to pretend to have liked the book when my sister asked me about it. I would put Paolini's work up with Elizabeth Kerner's, or with J.K. Rowling -- his dragon is well-written, his characters believable (and make mistakes) -- there is a richness in the world he writes which makes me want to know more. I too am anxiously awaiting Eldest. This is just his first foray -- who knows where the world he's created will grow? I think many of us forget that the depth we so love among some of the 'established' authors, was merely hinted at in their first works. I don't know Christopher Paolini from Adam -- I doubt I'll ever meet him. There's no reason for me to want to review this book, other than the fact that I was impressed by his work. One thing of which I am certain -- I am definitely the proud owner of a book which will one day be a collector's item.
Rating:  Summary: Inspiration of a Lifetime Review: Eragon is a powerful book, with fascinating characters, fantastic creatures galore, and a plot you'll instantly love. It's unforgettable, spellbinding, and absolutely addictive. To think that it was written by a teenager not much older than me is difficult to swallow, but it is also a great inspiration. Christopher Paolini's success inspires other teenagers to devote themselves to what they love, with passion and determination to reach their own elusive goals. Eragon's success has given me the courage to continue pursuing my own talents and it has helped show me that teenagers are not as obsolete as I once believed. Eragon's joys, his triumphs, his pain, his losses, and his determination to stay true to himself are felt by all who have shared his story. We will all remember Eragon and Saphira, and the long journey they have undertaken. Thank you, Christopher Paolini, for giving us such a beautiful treasure.
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