Nomadin

Nomadin #1

by Shawn P. Cormier

When his magical pencil starts talking back to the school bullies, it's the beginning of a journey that will force twelve-year-old Ilien Woodhill to choose between saving the world and discovering the truth about himself—a truth that might make him the very evil he's trying to fight. If you love books where young heroes must face impossible choices about power, identity, and destiny, Nomadin will keep you turning pages late into the night wondering whether the greatest magic of all is simply having the courage to be yourself.

Genres: Fantasy

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

I was born in 1967 and grew up in the small town of Southbridge, Massachusetts. I fell in love with books in fifth grade. Thank you, Miss Budzinski, where you are! I've been scribbling down stories ever since, and earned my Creative Writing degree from Southampton College. When not writing, I can be found in my family's jewelry store, repairing mystical heirlooms and studying the magical properties of gems, and wishing I was writing!.

Reviews

[Beth Lequeuvre · Rating 2 out of 5]

The back cover didn't really let you know that the protagonist is a 12-year-old. That foreknowledge would have set up my expectations for this book much differently. As it was, I was reading and hoping that the secret about the nomadin would be compelling enough to keep my engagement. I was a bit unsettled trying to understand the setting. It was set with kings and villages and magic just like your usual high fantasy story, but there was a pencil and a wizard reading the paper. The incongruence of modern objects in a fantasy story just niggled at me the whole read. The secret was never revealed, the book was set up to have a sequel, and the ending was pretty much rushed in the last 30 pages.

[Nathan Seal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really unique book. The premise sounded a bit familiar when I first picked it up, but then after a few pages I found it to be different to other books of this genre. It blends the world that we know with a fantasy one, so somethings are easy to relate to even if they seem out of place in a fantasy story. Overall, it's a solid start to a trilogy and I will for sure be moving onto the next one after this.

[Danai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nomadin is the kind of story kids (and adults) get lost in—full of magic, tough choices, and a hero you can’t help but root for. Ilien’s journey is thrilling and emotional, with real depth about identity and courage that lingers long after the last page.

[Ty · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful creation of excellent writing. Love every plot, every single minute of reading. Thank you o so much.

[Erick Morris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm sure it's probably a pretty good book for younger person

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting start to a trilogy. I love aspects (the talking pencil, the flaky princess, the kind giant), but other things were so random that they didn't seem to fit the story at all. Just kind of there to be "new and different" or something. A fun read, but I'm not sure I'd recommend the series.

[Leandra Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good story about a young teen who has to discover his real heritage and learn things about himself in order to be great. An easy read for YA and adults and the characters are endearing and different.