Customer Reviews

The Hero and the Crown

5 star:		(206)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This is, I believe, Robin McKinley's magnum opus. This book is often hard to locate, buried in the young adult section where it only half-belongs. Yes, this tale is about a teenage heroine, but the subject matter, her trials and emotions, are not limited to that audience. (Note to booksellers-By the way, most avid young adult sci-fi and fantasy fans have been reading from the adult section for years-you might do better to rethink the placement of these types of books.) Anyway, this novel tels the story of Aerin, arguably one of the most well-written and believable heroines out there. Her feelings of ineptitude and clumsiness are universal, yet her unknown powers don't develop miraculously, deus ex machina style, but are fought for and gained as a result of this fight. The narrative twists and turns in surprising ways, and the tale doesn't always turn out the way we originally think it will, and yet the turns never feel out of place. This is a novel from a whole other world, and yet it feels real. The characters are true-to-life and honestly drawn by this masterful author. This book would definitely draw someone into the fantasy genre.

Have you ever read a book as a child that still managed to resonate as an adult? "Hero and the Crown" was one such book for me. I can still remember reading it as an 11 year old, and presenting a shoe box diorama of the showdown between Aerin and the Dragon in my reading class. While the strong feminist principles were not quite understood as an 11 year old, they are today. Even re-reading it now, you cheer for Aerin as she begins to understand her place in the world, and how what others say really doesn't matter. She longs to be more than the sum of her parts, and proves to be more than capable not only to herself, but to her father and the Damarians.

Great example of Robin McKinley's writing, that transcends age and sex, and is a worthy adventure/fantasy for everyone.

For years this book sat on the shelf of my high school's library staring at me while I obstinantly refused to read it. It's not that I didn't like fantasy; it's just that I had had a few bad encounters in the past with "feminist" fantasy (e.g. Marion Zimmer Bradley), and I wasn't interested in reading another grrl power, male-bashing fantasy novel. I must have just assumed it was like that since it had a female heroine.

Finally, years later (I'm 22 now) I returned to it with a more open mind and a positive review from my wife. I thought it was one of the most captivating fantasy novels I've read. I couldn't put it down. If you've ever felt like the outcast among your peers or like you just don't fit in you'll be able to identify with the main character. If you're introverted and prefer the company of books to people (and many of the people who will bother to read this book are like this) then you will find a soul mate in Aerin. It doesn't matter if you're a guy or a girl, this book will appeal to anyone who likes a good story and knows what it's like to have to "prove" yourself in order to gain acceptance.

Like some other readers, I just have to keep coming back to this book; I usually read it and The Blue Sword about once a year (usually shortly after I finish rereading the Anne of Green Gables books or Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles).

McKinley's non-chronological arrangement of events does make the first read a little confusing but it's worth it; once you know the general outline of the story it's a great read, so stick with it. There are dark parts of the book, certainly, but dark isn't always bad and it can be thrilling.

The Hero and the Crown isn't meant (I think) to be the Great American Novel. It's an adventure story with some heart and some brain and a heroine who discovers strength she didn't know she possessed, and it's always entertaining. Highly recommended, as is The Blue Sword. I didn't care for Deerskin and am impatiently awaiting McKinley's next book in the series.

My daughter and I struggled through this book. I write this not to imply that it is a bad book. The story is a good one and it is very well written, but it strikes me as a story written for young people but in a very adult style. Technically, Ms. McKinley is a very proficient writer, but she uses lots of long, complex sentences that can even be difficult for an adult with above-average reading skills to wade through. My nearly eleven-year-old daughter was frequently lost. Beyond that, the book takes place very much on an emotional, impressionistic, sometimes surreal plane. There are only three action sequences in the entire book: the battle with the great dragon, the battle with the evil northern lord, and the battle before the gates of Damar's capitol city. Each of these is vivid, but brief. For example, Aerin, our heroine, spends more time climbing the stairs of the tower to find the evil Lord Agsded than she does actually fighting him. Her feelings and thoughts as she climbs the stairs are explored at length, but it all culminates in a brief and anti-climactic confrontation.

I'm sure there are young readers out there who love this book. Some of the other reviews here bear witness to that. I think, however, that these are exceptional young readers. The average kid will have a difficult time. The 9 to 12 year-old who takes on this book will need to be both a very good reader and a very patient one. My daughter frequently found other things she preferred to do when it came time to sit down and read "The Hero And The Crown". For that reason, we've held our rating on it to just three stars.

Should be considered mandatory reading for every girl from ages 9-15 (no, make that 4-100). I've read this book every year for the past, oh, ten or so years. Robyn McKinley's characters are incredibly complex for a young adult story (and quite honestly, I didn't realize it was considered young adult until i had to replace my battered and much beloved copy a couple of years ago and couldn't find her in the regular fantasy section). Ok, so it does have a woman with a sword on the cover. For those who aren't immediately interested in the fantasy genre, it's probably off-putting.

But for those who can read fantasy, they'll find a young woman who has had to learn self reliance, practically from the first chapter. She actually does face the dragon no one else can. And the story doesn't end with her cataclysmic fight. The perfect prince doesn't exist, rather there are two very real men that both love the main character. McKinley doesn't waste time on creating the fairy tale ending - or rather, she complicates every traditional fantasy assumption.

1. The writing. There are writers who have great content, but use words unimaginatively; there are writers who have a delicate and subtle grasp on language, but have boring or atrocious stories; and there are those, rare and few, who can do both. Create human characters and beautiful prose. McKinley is one of them. She is a true prose writer - some of her writing verges on poetry. Every line is constructed with a particular cadence and measure. That, itself, is worth the reading. Most authors can't keep up that kind of style.

2. The story. There's everything right with a story that starts out conventionally wrong. Some critics say this book doesn't get going until the middle. They're totally misguided: the story starts the reader with enough questions to choke a horse (the best way to begin, to challenge interest, to retain a reader). Its structure is well developed and unique. The extended flashback that comprises the first act of the book is masterful. McKinley unfolds a tale, rather than wasting pages and pages on exposition.

3. The characters. Don't exist in a vacuum. Aren't archetypes. Have moods. Can hold two thoughts in their head at once. Have consistent personalities. Act impulsively. The good ones are people you'd like to get to know better. And, honestly, in a genre that continues to be dominated by sword toting men and the women who follow them, this is a book about a girl who chooses her own way. Who doesn't shy from the right (but dangerous, scary, and painful) path. As a woman it does get tiring reading the male perspective day in and day out.

Oh hell. Go out and buy it. You'll find it absolutely worthwhile.

You'll have to forgive me for my less than poetic review title, but there's only one way to say it -- for my money, this may be the best novel ever written.

I discovered this book when I was in the sixth grade, and I have read it at least two or three times a year, ever since. I'm now 23, and the book has lost none of its power or magic in all of those readings. If anything, it's only gotten more powerful, as the subtleties of Aerin's story become more clear with time and experience.

A richly written novel with excellently rendered characters, this book is perfect for a reader of any age or gender. But I would like to point out that it may be especially good for young women -- Aerin is no passive heroine, and although she struggles to understand her place as a woman and a daughter in her father's court, she does not "buckle" to the pressures of society. Instead, she becomes simply -herself-, and her people love and respect her all the more for her voice and accomplishments. That's a message that a lot of young women these days need to hear -- I know it's one that I needed, and this is one book that has helped me become who I am, without apologies.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. Read some of the other reviews of this book, too, to fully comprehend how this book grabs you in and won't let go. Even after I finished I couldn't stop thinking about Aerin-sol, the unwanted Damarian princess. (My friends said I was "zoned" for days after.) This is an extremely intense book, and really must be read three times to fully enjoy it. Unlike most other reviewers, I was an "ancient" 16 when I read it the first time. Read this before you read "The Blue Sword" because "Sword" gives away the ending; it also gives you the wrong impression that "Hero" is a happy book (Robin McKinley must have based Aerin on someone she really hated, for all the times that Aerin's sick or wounded). "Hero" was written after "Sword," but you should read them as close as possible to one another and then read them over again to get all the details. I think "Hero" is darker than "Sword" because McKinley wanted us to be reading a new story -- it's not really like "Sword's" picture of Aerin at all. Once you've read these two, go out and read the rest of McKinley's books. --Abigail

In the Hero and the Crown, McKinley as usual creates a vivid, magical, seemingly real world with realistic characters that readers cannot help but feel attachment towards. This story is much darker and more "grown-up" than it's sequel The Blue Sword, but in being so it becomes to my mind the more superior of the two.

I do give the book five stars as it is really a wonderful story, but again, characteristically of McKinley's novel, the reader should be prepared to be left with some unanswered questions and a bit of confusion as to how magic in the novel occurs. The only other obvious criticism with the novel is, at least to my mind, is that I found myself finding Tor less and less appealing as the story progressed and Luthe developed.

Again, those are the only problems I found with this wonderful book. It is truly worthy of all the praise and honors it has gained.

The first part of a two-part historical fantasy, The Hero and the Crown won Robin McKinley a well-deserved Newbery Award. The land of Damar will captivate you and linger with you long after you close the book. McKinley's writing and style are exceptional. Let's face it, authors do not write like this anymore - even she doesn't anymore. All the more reason to treasure these intoxicating worlds of words.

The titular Hero is actually a heroine, Aerin, an shunned princess of Damar. From the beginning, life is not good for Aerin and sets the dark mood of the novel. She's the only royal who is not magical - a very strange occurrence for a Damarian. Additionally, her late mother's dubious reputation has cast a shadow on the daughter. Her only allies are Tor, a cousin, and her maimed horse, Talat.

A dragon is tormenting Damarians and Aerin sets out to prove her worth to her people. Her preparations, struggles, and failures are heart-breaking. McKinley's superior descriptive skills are very much in evidence throughout the book. From the moment you begin reading, her words cast a spell, drawing readers into her world like a vortex. It's so easy to empathize with Aerin as she fights every step of the way to finding herself.

This journey leads her to a mage, Luthe, and further battles. There is a sense of constant action, when in fact there are not many actual combats. Aerin's search for purpose, identity is so strong every sentence carried the weight of a sword-clashing charge. The final course of the plot and characters weren't quite to my liking as a romantic teen when I first read Hero, but the inevitability and *rightness* of it comes with a realistic sense of bittersweetness and maturity. I hesitated to write this review at all because I was (and am) afraid I may dissuade a reader from trying this excellent author, but I believe other reviews speak just as strongly in its favor as this one is attempting to.

The more I consider Robin McKinley, the more I believe she isn't so much a young adult author as simply an adult one. Her text and content are fit for an adolescent age bracket, but to get the most of her best work, a great deal more maturity is helpful. I'm still learning from these "kid's" books well into my twenties. These are the kind of books that grow up with you and continue to enlighten, comfort, and push you. Another favorite is the sequel, The Blue Sword.