Claw of the Dragon (Endless Quest) [Paperback]

Bruce Algozin (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Endless Quest

You are charged with carrying a message to stop dragons from attacking your village. With your brother you must travel to the Ayrie before the evil red dragon convinces the other dragons to attack!

Updated for today's young readers, this action-packed series allows readers to jump right into their very own fantasy adventure.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bruce Algozin lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with his wife and their cat.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Mirrorstone (January 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786947195
• ISBN-13: 978-0786947195
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.5 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #542,784 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A fine continuiation of a classic series, June 1, 2008

By 

Thom Denick (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Claw of the Dragon (Endless Quest) (Paperback)

Let me start by saying that if you read any of the original Endless Quest series by TSR, than you are probably too old for Claw of the Dragon. However, if you enjoy children's literature as an adult, and liked Choose Your Own Adventure or Endless Quest books, this is a good revival of the old series.

However, having recently re-read many of the old EQ books, I have to say that Bruce Algozin has done his homework, and has done a fine job of forging a path for an Endless Quest rebirth. This book is up to par with the old Endless Quest books, and takes me back to the days when Rose Estes ignited my imagination with her early contributions to the Endless Quest series.

The story itself is vaguely placed in a D&D-like atmosphere, but with Leprechauns. I don't know why authors think kids love Leprechauns more than say gnomes or some other more exotic D&D creature, but the Leprechaun here is not too obnoxious, and breaks some of the conventions you would expect with a mythical creature. (Leprechauns make several appearances in old EQ adventures.)

The story is fairly epic in scope, and can be exciting at times. The climax is well-paced with lots of choices and some "how will he get out of this?" situations. My only complaint are the abrupt ending for the "perfect" conclusion. It seems hurried with no real wrap up with what happens to any of the main characters.

The choices are a bit less brutal than classic Endless Quests, and the "good" choices are pretty obvious to an adult. What I liked most about this adventure was that the endings weren't dumbed down for today's kids. There are sometimes harsh consequences to your choices, and you even have your brother constantly second guessing your choices who would probably be Chaotic Neutral, on his way to Evil in the D&D alignment system.

Like other WOTC products, it does have typos, whose fault lies squarely on the editors. Additionally, for some reason, Bruce's name does not appear on the cover. I think that's a poor choice. Even as a kid I would often select which EQ novel to buy based on authors I knew I liked.

The binding is high-quality, and the print a nice, readable font which should make it more accessible to younger pre-teens. I definitely recommend this book to old Endless Quest fans who crave the nostalgia of those old adventures. I also would recommend it to any child who is into high fantasy setting.