Book Reviews

When you pick up a fantasy genre book for teenagers, you expect Tolkeinesque trekking through rocks and meeting strange hybrid creatures, right? You expect lengthy descriptions of mountains, tunnels and pathways, yes? You expect charm, betrayal, adventure and friendship across species and a hero with the odds against him, don’t you? You get all of this in the first volume of this Saga by Hawaiian author Brian Tashima, but he adds some extra ingredients to make his writing unique.

Firstly, the touch of his Hawaiian culture comes through: There is a laid back, grass roots way that Tashima writes that […]

Any mention of the fantasy genre these days brings to mind Harry Potter, particularly if school-age magic workers just discovering their talents are involved. However, it is worth noting that J.K. Rowling didn’t invent child wizards, schools of witchcraft, or many of the familiar tropes of the Harry Potter series. She simply worked in a tradition that goes back a long way. She did it beautifully, of course, but so did many before her, including Ursula K. Le Guin, Susan Cooper, and Diana Wynne Jones.

With Ambril’s Tale, Wendy D. Walter has made her first contribution to this […]