Harry Potter and other fantasy

[Peggy Beck <pbeck@recom.com>]

I willingly admit to finding Harry Potter captivating and only regretted
that I came to the end of each of the first two books. Another author
who should be read by ALL ages is T.A. Barron. His Lost Years of Merlin
epic is NOT TO BE MISSSED. You don't have to read them in order, but you
will want to read them all. They are a mixture of adventure, humor,
poetry, and magic with poignant and original insights into the Arthurian
era. Barron creates memorable characters (human, animal, and human
changing to animal) and recreates another era for readers of all ages.
The most recent and my favorite at the moment is The Mirror of Merlin.
Merlin's quest and meeting with himself in the future is provocative.
The ballymag (a creature "possessed of a seal's long whiskers & deep,
sorrowful eyes. But instead of fins, this creature had arms, three on
each side...From his well-padded belly hung a net of greenish
webbing...while his back held a row of long delicate tails, each one
coiled tightly into a spiral...'Oh, terribulous painodeath! Horribulous
bloodyhurt!' he bellowed. 'My endafinis, so soon, so soon...'") is
delightful! I had to read the dialog out loud and saw the novel as an
animated movie as I read. Hallia is a graceful creature who changes from
deer to young woman; Gwynnia is a lovable dragon!. All these creatures
are important to the growth and testing of young Merlin.Try The Mirrors
of Merlin (due out in Sept.) or begin with Book 1 The Lost Years of
Merlin, Book 2 the Seven Songs of Merlin, and Book 3 The Fires of
Merlin. Check out his website at http://www.tabarron.com.
--
Peggy Beck, Educational Media Specialist,   856-424-3721
JF Cooper Elementary School, 1960 Greentree Rd., Cherry Hill, NJ 08003
NJEA REVIEW "Booktalk" columnist
pbeck@recom.com

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