Customer Reviews

Dragon Rider

5 star:		(175)
4 star:		(52)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Cornelia Funke shot to literary stardom with the international bestseller "The Thief Lord," an instant hit in the UK, US and Germany. And in her third American release, she shows no sign of slowing. "Dragon Rider" is a solid draconian fantasy, although laced with a bit too much whimsy.

In fantasy stories, peaceful valleys are prime targets. This one is no exception -- the home of a clan of dragons is being threatened. So the silver-skinned Firedrake sets out to find the Rim of Heaven, which may be the sanctuary they need. Along the way he and his brownie sidekick Sorrel pick up a human boy, Ben, who wats to help them out.

But their quest is being complicated by Nettlebrand, a strange manmade dragon with metal scales and a serious attitude problem, and a bow-and-scraping homunculus. Nettlebrand's goal is to destroy Firedrake and the other dragons, unless Firedrake, Ben and Sorrel can defeat him, and find the Rim of Heaven.

Cornelia Funke strays into lighter turf with "Dragon Rider," which was originally written seven years back. It's not lightweight exactly, but it lacks some of the somberness of her past two books. It's not vaguely dark like "Thief Lord," and it doesn't have the overstrained seriousness of "Inkheart." Rather it feels like Funke loosened up and decided to just write something more whimsical.

No Anne McCaffrey dragons here -- Funke doesn't overburden readers with the nitty-gritty of dragons. At times she does take the whimsy too far (a dragon living on moonlight? What's up with that?). However, her solid writing and fantasy trappings avoid being precious, and add a grounded feel to a 100% fantastical storyline.

And Funke doesn't fail readers with her characters. Firedrake, Ben and Sorrel are likable and well-rounded, and while Twigleg the homunculus gets annoying, he's well-done. Nettlebrand is an intriguingly original villain, although he could have used a few more motivations.

While "Dragon Rider" can be a bit overwhimsical at times, it's a pleasant, more laid-back fantasy that brings Lloyd Alexander's standalone fantasies to mind. Recommended for dragon-lovers everywhere. (And aren't they everywhere?)

I have to admit that this is the first Cornelia Funke book I have read. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I knew the story would intrigue me. I certainly was not disappointed, even though I am an adult.

This is a great read for kids (and for adults who like adventure that isn't too dark). This is a story of a long journey full of great whimsical adventure. Every child in the 9-12 age group should read it. I love how Ms. Funke uses flashbacks and foreshadowing to provide elements along the way that are key to side stories within the story and to the climax of the story.

The only (not necessarily negative) comment I would make about the book is that the translation to English seems a bit rough in some places -- but in a way this kinda helps add to the whimsical nature of the story.

I am also amazed at the length of children's books these days. I remember when a book for 9-12 year-olds was 100 to maybe 200 pages long -- not 423. It seems like J. K. Rowling started something. But this was a page-turner and should keep anyone's interest (especially kids) throughout. I think it is good to see children's books get longer -- it is more challenging (and less insulting) to a child's intelligence, and it allows them to enjoy the adventure of the story (and reading) even longer. Bravo!!

Thanks, Cornelia. Like Professor Greenbloom, I too now BELIEVE in "fabulous animals". Now I need to read some more of Funke's work -- I think Inkheart will be first.

To everybody who is thinking about reading this book -- DO!! You will enjoy it!!

When I bought this book, I had already read Inheart and The Thief Lord and was hoping Ms. Funke wouldn't let me down. Well, she didn't! This book is very likeable and a fun fantasy read. Though, as previously mentioned by another reviewer, it isn't as serious as her other works, but more light-hearted. I really enjoyed it, and thought that the author did a good job of putting a clever spin on over-familiarized mystical beasts. Not to mention I was sad when it ended, and that's always a good sign! It's a little slow getting started, but is hardly a drawback at all. Recommended!

"Dragon Rider" was first published in Germany as "Drachenreiter" several years ago, long before Eragon was first published. So no, Cornelia Funke is not ripping off Paolini's "idea". Not to mention the fact that Paolini has a (cough) slight tendency to plaigarize a bit himself.

But more to the point...

Pros:

1. An engaging read for younger audiences...with a five-hundred page attention span, anyhow.
2. Great for extended bedtime or family reading sessions.

Cons:

1. The characters are very flat and static, with the possible exception of the homunculus, Twigleg.
2. Firedrake just seems at times to be nothing more than an exotic vehicle for the "hero," Ben, who rarely does anything save for getting captured by giant monsters left and right. While poor Firedrake is doing all the hard work, Ben is just kind of...there...without much to offer but emotional support.
3. For older readers, many of the book's concepts can seem a bit overly whimsical (e.g. the dragons living by "drinking" moonlight).
4. The dialogue is almost nauseatingly corny in places.

In conclusion, I give Dragon Rider 3 out of 5 stars because, while not perfect, it is a charming read and you'll love it if you're a fan of dragon-fantasy scenarios as I am.

In Dragon Rider three unlikely companions, Firedrake, a dragon, Sorrel the brownie, a catlike creature that loves to eat mushrooms, and Ben, a homeless boy, embark on a dangerous journey to find a land that might not even exist. The story begins when Rat, a friend of the dragons, brings bad news of humans to the dragons' cave. " `I've got bad news, if you want to know. Extremely bad news...' " Firedrake, one of the dragons, sets off with his brownie friend Sorrel to find "The Rim of Heaven" a sacred place where it is believed the dragons could live in peace forever. Soon along their journey they come across Ben, an orphaned, homeless boy who desperately wishes for a journey. Ben soon joins the group and gets to ride on Firedrake's back along with Sorrel on the way to find The Rim of Heaven. Along their journey, they receive help from many unexpected places and people, like a rat mapmaker, a seaserpent, and a scientist. Although they receive much help to reach their destination, trouble lies ahead for Firedrake, Ben, and Sorrel. Will they make it to The Rim of Heaven?
This exciting fantasy is set in magical lands hidden in places like Europe and Africa in fantasy times when dragons and magical creatures lived around the world. I thought Dragon Rider was a very exciting and thrilling book. The author, Cornelia Funke, did a fantastic job on Dragon Rider using such realistic descriptions of characters. They were so well described that you would think Cornelia Funke lives with such creatures. Her style of writing makes the book a very fast read, and the book is the type of book you won't be able to put down. If you enjoy fantasy novels, you would love reading Dragon Rider since the book is filled with many fantasy creatures and the plot is very exciting. A book I would compare Dragon Rider to is The Shade's Children by Garth Nix. Both books are very fast pace and thrilling throughout the whole story. Dragon Rider stands out from all other fantasy books since there are many creatures that are very original in the book, ones that Cornelia Funke made up. This book is very similar to other books Cornelia Funke has written like Inkheart since all her books are very detailed and imaginative. If you enjoy fantasy books, or even if you don't, you would enjoy reading Dragon Rider.

The reason I think this book should get five stars and two thumbs up is because of all the excitement and this book offers. Not only that, but you might also get a little worried about our heroes trying to achieve their goal. They even meet a horrible creature and have close encounters with death. They also have times of joy and you will notice all these things as they meet new people.
The story begins on an island where dragons are lurking in the caves. Suddenly, they hear that humans and their bulldozers are on the verge of destroying their home. So one of the brave dragons and a brownie start off on a quest to find The Rim of Heaven. There are a lot of characters, but I will name the main ones.
Firedrake the Dragon, Sorrel the Brownie, Ben the Human [or Homo Sapien in scientific terms], Nettlebrand the Evil Half Dragon, Twigleg the Homunculus, Gravelbeard the Mountain Dwarf, Professor Greenbloom the Human, Vita Greenbloom the Human, and Guinevere Greenbloom the Human.
If you are a blood and guts kind of reader, this story is not really your type of book. This book is for all you dragon loving fantasy readers. This book gives you fantastic fantasy reading with dragons and brownies and a half dragon with ravens as servants that are made from different animals. But on the other hand, if you like action- adventure stories with mystical creatures, this book is for you. Also the places they visit are real. Now why am I talking about the book when you can read it yourself? Go on read this great book and you'll see what I mean.

While reading this book I forced myself into the mind of a fourth grader, and when you're thirty-eight year old, that can be difficult. What helped me was remembering the books that I was reading at the time, and what stuck out the most was Baum's Oz series. I read and reread and re-reread and re-re-reread all fourteen of the Oz books so many times that my mother actually told me to stop checking them out of the library. But I couldn't help myself. In my opinion, there was nothing better, nothing that evoked the sense of amazement and wonder that Baum's books did.

Fixed on that, I found myself in a perfect position to read and enjoy this book. And I enjoyed it tremendously. In fact, I have a difficult time believing that anyone within the age range that this book was intended for, and who likes fantasy, would not like it because it has all of the elements of magic that a children's fantasy needs. I'm quite certain that if this book had been around when I finished with the Oz books that I would have eaten this up as quickly as I had consumed Baum's works, and perhaps even read, re-read - OK, you get the picture.

It contains so-called "fabulous" creatures, and defines them in unique and appealing ways: dragons who require moonlight for energy and don't ravage villages for food (all but one of them, at any rate); mountain dwarves whose powers lie within their hats and who can smell silver or gold; brownies who practically obsess over the eating and cultivation of mushrooms and for whom spit has magical properties; a homunculus created by a fourteenth century alchemist who speaks 93 languages (what else would you do if you were 700 years old other than spend most of that time learning); talking rats; and many more. Every one that you meet has its stereotype redefined with at least a tiny tweak so that it doesn't seem as if you are merely reading a book about creatures who already know. I think tweaking the stereotypical definitions was a terrific idea.

Then there's the quest itself. The dragons are being displaced from their home. One of them, Firedrake, offers to leave and search for the legendary Rim of Heavens where other dragons are rumored to live, and which is rumored to be beautiful beyond metaphor. To get there, the questers receive a map from a rat, who is a master cartographer, and this map is included (partially) in the book itself as a full color foldout which gives the book an added appeal.

The adventures of the questers, the questions of loyalties that arise, the manner in which issues of morality are handled all make for exciting reading. Not to mention their pursuer, who is also a dragon but of a very different kind than Firedrake. The writing of that particular character was deftly done, and that in itself is an achievement. It isn't often that the "lead" antagonist can be put on every page and not cause the story to lose any of its immediacy.

My only wish is that a little more time had been given to describing these fabulous creatures. When I think of a dragon, I immediately (like many adults who read fantasy) think of Smaug, from Tolkien's masterpiece The Hobbit. Or of any number of films and books where the dragon is so much bigger than humans. I didn't really get a grasp of how large this dragon was (or wasn't) until I was deep into the book. Since the author went against stereotypes (for example, who would have thought that a brownie looked similar to a cat?), I think this was an essential piece that was missing.

In any event, that's the worst I can say for this. Reading this strictly as an adult, I would give this three and half, maybe four stars. But reading it as a fourth, fifth, or sixth grader, I can't give it any less than 5. It is truly an excellent book for this age group. If you're a parent teetering on whether or not to buy it, do so. You won't be disappointed.

One other thing: this book was only published here in America now because of the success of Eragon. It was first published in Germany in 1997 - before even Harry Potter hit the stands. Don't blame the author for copying, as she most certainly is not. Her publisher merely thought that a book about a dragon and a rider would sell particularly well in today's "climate", and they were right.

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke is one of the best books I've read this month, it tells the story of an orphaned boy that meets a team made up of a dragon and brownie, together they try and find a place called the rim of heaven, because the valley of dragons will soon be flooded. While doing this they meet a Homunculus which is a spy of the fearsome beast Nettlebrand who follows them steathly to the Rim of Heaven to attack and eventually eat all silver dragons. The homunculus(Twigleg) soon confesses his espionage but they forgive him and in so doing he becomes a mole.Giving false info to Nettlebrand and really working for the good guys.
The book was long (about 530 pgs) but definately worth the reading, she has a creative style of writing and the abiltity to portray fantasic creatures like never before.

I am twelve years old, and this book was a thriller. It is apropriate for all ages.In this book a young boy joins a dragon and a brownie on their quest to find more of their kind. More freinds join on the way, but also many enemies. If you enjoy adventure, mythical creatures, and amazing experiments. This is the book for you.

Cornelia Funke's long and occasionally tedious novel is enlivened by Brendan Fraser's imaginative and, dare I say, brilliant vocal performance. The characters, brownies, dragons, dwarves, humans and fairies are all given a different and charming voice my Mr. Fraser. He more than deserves to receive the AUDIE award for his performance. I highly recommend listening to this audio book just to revel in the talent of this man's rendition of Funke's work. Brendan Fraser rocks. I hope to hear him reading more books on tape in the future.