It borrows liberally from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Earthsea. It's reminescent of Dick King-Smith's The Water Horse (and of every fantasy story ever written). It is the Inheritance Cycle, a massive sprawling wordy cliched epic following the adventures of young Christopher Paolini Eragon as he goes from humble farm boy to Jedi Knight Super Epic Special Elf-Powered Dragon Rider.
But seriously, it has been said before and it bears repeating. If you're looking for high-quality literature then keep looking. Not that there's anything specifically morally wrong with the Inheritance books, unless you consider poor writing morally offensive. It's just that there is very little to praise. It doesn't score marks for originality, or compelling characters, or fabulous writing, or striking ideas. In fact, there's very little in the series to recommend it at all.
Again, it's not that Inheritance is morally offensive. Like any good fantasy story, it covers ideas like good vs. evil, the injustice of opression, and the virtues of loyalty and bravery. If you can put aside the insipid plot and writing style, (and the modernistic themes), then there's nothing dreadfully wrong with handing these books to your children. Just know that there's a lot of better stuff out there. Try that great-grandfather of all fantasy stories, The Lord of the Rings. Or Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea Cycle. Or Lloyd Alexander's fantastic Prydain Chronicles. Or Stephen Lawhead's Dragon King Trilogy. Or Susan Cooper's mystic Dark is Rising Sequence.
If you do read and love the Inheritance Cycle we're not judging you. There are lots of kids who love the books, and there are lots of adults who have no problem with them. And respect does go to Christopher Paolini, a homeschooler who had enough drive to finish his first book at the age of fifteen. But just because all those things are true doesn't mean that the books are worth it. With a whole wealth of better books out there, your time might be better spent reading something else.
Review by Lauren Shearer
Lauren Shearer writes words for fun and profit. She also makes films, but everyone knows you can't make a profit doing that. Her other hobby is consistently volunteering way too much of her time. You can read more of her reviews
here.
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