Christopher Paolini
Christopher Paolini continues his story of Eragon and Saphira, which began in his debut novel, Eragon, in his second novel, Eldest, published by Alfred A. Knopf in 2005 (ISBN 978-0-375-82670-2). According to the author’s website (www.alagaesia.com), Paolini began this book after his initial novel was discovered by well-known author Carl Hiaasen, published by Alfred A. Knopf, and introduced to readers through a publicity tour of the United States and United Kingdom.
Eragon and Saphira’s Training
In Eragon, readers were introduced to Eragon, a fifteen-year-old farm boy, who found a dragon egg and became embroiled in an uprising against Galbatorix, the tyrannical king of Alagaësia. Eldest begins after the final battle of Eragon. Once the human rebels (the Varden) and their allies, the dwarves, have recovered from battle, Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, head to the kingdom of the elves to complete their training as dragon and rider.
Eldest also shows the reader the adventures of Eragon’s cousin, Roran, who was left behind in the small town of Carvahall when the king’s forces attacked Eragon and killed his uncle Garrow. Although Eragon and his original teacher left Roran with a warning, neither Roran nor the townfolk were prepared when the king’s forces returned to capture Roran. Like Eragon, Roran becomes more of a hero during the following conflicts than he could have imagined.
Alagaësia needs all of the heroes it can find, as Galbatorix mobilizes his troops to put down the uprisings in the kingdom.
The Inheritance Cycle
Eldest is a 670 page novel giving more information about the characters, mythology, history, and languages introduced in Eragon. According to Paolini’s website, Eldest is the second of four books in the Inheritance Cycle. The first and third books (Eragon and Brisingr) have also been published. As a book planned as the second in a trilogy, Eldest gives additional character development and prepares readers for a final, larger conflict. The release of Brisingr during 2008 created a flurry of publicity for the Inheritance Cycle, in part due to the news that the originally planned trilogy had been expanded to four books. Although it is not a stand-alone story, Eldest accurately summarizes the first book in the series and finishes its own story arc at an acceptable completion point. If anything, the meticulous details of Eragon’s training, especially set against the fast pace of Roran’s adventures, will make readers more anxious for the preparation to end and the heroes to finish the battle against Galbatorix.
This book is young adult fiction in that the main character is a teenager; however, parents should be aware that there are violent scenes throughout the book which may not be appropriate for young readers. In addition, Eldest explores the religion of the dwarves and agnosticism of the elves as they train Eragon and Saphira. Although the concepts are presented in a fictional setting, parents may wish to discuss these ideas with young readers.
For a review of Eragon, please click here: Eragon Review
Shonda Folsom - Shonda Folsom earned her bachelor's degree from Southwest Baptist University and her law degree from the University of Notre Dame. To ...
