Searching for Dragons (Mass Market Paperback)

by Patricia C. Wrede (Author) "The King of the Enchanted Forest was twenty years old and lived in a rambling, scrambling, mixed-up castle somewhere near the center of his domain..." (more)
Key Phrases: transportation spell, different dragons, more wizards, Enchanted Forest, King of the Dragons, Prince Rupert (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Dealing as it does with dragon-napping and magic-stealing, this sequel to Dealing with Dragons puts a whimsical spin on familiar fairy-tale elements. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-9-- First the good news. The fun continues. The bad news? It continues without the fierce benign presence of Kazul, King of the Dragons, for at least 90 percent of the book. The no-nonsense sisterhood of the Princess Cimorene and her unwilling captor, Kazul, was one of the delights of Dealing with Dragons (HBJ, 1990). In compensation, however, readers are introduced to Mendanbar, King of the Enchanted Forest. Very much still a callow youth, he imposes his preference for the simple, active life on his new role as king, disappointing his steward, the elf Willin, who has anticipated a resumption of pomp and formality. The discovery of a patch in the Enchanted Forest laid waste by wizards starts him on a quest that soon leads him to Cimorene. The two join forces to find the missing Kazul, and begin a series of misadventures that include riding a defective magic carpet decorated with pink bears, melting several wizards with Cimorene's infallible formula of soapy water and lemon juice, and advising a giant who is bored with pillaging to go into the consulting business. Wrede's tongue-in-cheek humor balances well with sweet adolescent discovery, and the result is another winning chapter in a delightful tale. --Sally T. Margolis, Park Ridge Public Library, IL
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 242 pages
• Publisher: Point Fantasy (September 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590457217
• ISBN-13: 978-0590457217
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,254,783 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's fantasy, it's comedy, it's . . . delightful, January 4, 2002

By	Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Kazul, King of the Dragons is missing, and sections of the Enchanted Forest have been stripped of their magic and turned into dust. This can only be the work of those dastardly wizards. In Searching for Dragons, we unite again with the delightful Cimorene, princess--make that Chief Cook and Librarian--for Kazul, the newly selected King of the Dragons as she seeks once again to thwart the plans of the Society of Wizards to steal untold amounts of magic from the land, this time by attempting to start a distracting war between the realm of dragons and the kingdom of the bordering Enchanted Forest. Mendanbar, the young king of the Enchanted Forest, having discovered sections of his forest destroyed, heeds the council of a wise squirrel to seek the counsel of Morwen the witch. She insists that he meet with the King of the Dragons, before which meeting he encounters the head wizard Zemenar, who implicates the dragons in the destruction he has discovered. Boldly going to the Mountains of Morning, he encounters Cimorene, learns that Kazul is missing, and finds himself joining Cimorene in a search for the missing dragon. Along the way, they encounter a pair of giants, survive a wild ride on a faulty magic carpet, repulse an attack by a horde of snakes, meet up with a strange, loquacious magician, and finally unite along with Morwen to take on the wizards and rescue Kazul. This time, they need more than buckets of soapy water and lemon juice to defeat Zemenar's crew.

Wrede is a wonderful writer. She is especially good at closing every hole in the story--things mentioned even briefly early on are brought into play before the end, and the fact that I as a reader actually forgot about many of them along the way just makes me respect her talents even more. Her incorporation of fairy tale lore is brilliantly subtle, and her description of the magic practiced by Mendanbar, which is essentially a visual magic, is quite unusual and interesting. I think that young and old alike can find great enjoyment in this book--I myself believe that it is very important to retain at least a measure of the wonder and magic we knew as children, and fantasy such as this helps much in this regard. Do yourself a favor and read Dealing With Dragons first; you won't appreciate Cimorene nearly as much without knowledge of the first book. While you're at it, go ahead and get Calling on Dragons and Talking to Dragons, as well--if you read one, you will want to read them all.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Entire Series Is (Still) Phenomenally Brilliant, May 31, 2000

By	Sunil Patel (Oakland, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

What? Only five stars? I need more to do this series justice! Patricia C. Wrede writes marvelous fantasy. It's like "Mixed-Up Fairy Tales" or something, but funnier, more engaging, and ripe for repeat reading (After graduating from high school, I read the entire series for the third time in a matter of days). These are timeless tales. Even her NAMES are inventive. Cimorene, Mendanbar, Kazul, Morwen, Telemain, Daystar, Shiara...and let us not forget Zemenar and Antorell. The chapter headings induce chuckles immediately, simply by their existence. She writes in a style that incorporates intelligent fantasy with enjoyable humor. The characters are some you would like to know personally. And nowhere else have I seen as unique a discussion of magic in its many forms as in these four books. I did notice a trend of centralization. Dealing was Cimorene's book. Searching was Mendanbar's. Calling was Morwen's. Talking was Daystar's. I wish the series was not concluded, because I'd love to see Telemain's book. And perhaps Kazul's book could be somewhat of a prequel. Oh, and what about a book from Antorell's perspective? That would make for an incredibly funny story. The Enchanted Forest and its surrounding is a world I want to know about. Not many authors can create an entire world that entices the reader so greatly. But Mrs. Wrede has. Unlike the Douglas Adams' Hitchiker's Guide series, which got progressively worse, each book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles compares to the original, as fresh and brilliant as ever. Needless to say, this series is one of the best ever. I have not really sampled a lot of the adult fantasy by Piers Anthony and Anne McCaffrey and such, but I doubt they can compare with the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. This is not mindboggling fantasy like the Lord of the Rings trilogy: this is fun. Oh, and remember: <points finger>..."Argelfraster."

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I DID NOT PUT THIS DOWN, November 25, 1999

By	Carrie "johnhomerbmwcnstrs" (USA) - See all my reviews

This book, along with the other three in the series, captured my full attention and did not let it go until I had read the entire 600+ pages in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. I got it on a Friday and kept reading until my eyes would not stay open, I woke up Early Saturday and, well, read the entire thing. It is one of the absolute best books I have ever read with an original plot. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.