What do you think?
Rate this book
The Wizard's Apprentice
The son of a Hollywood special-effects technician, Aaron wishes for some real magic and is given the chance to try out as an apprentice to a two-thousand-year-old wizard, setting off a series of spectacular mishaps.
132 pages, Library Binding
First published September 1, 1993
3 people are currently reading
24 people want to read
About the author
S.P. Somtow
180 books156 followersCalled by the Bangkok Post "the Thai person known by name to most people in the world," S.P. Somtow is an author, composer, filmmaker, and international media personality whose dazzling talents and acerbic wit have entertained and enlightened fans the world over.
He was Somtow Papinian Sucharitkul in Bangkok. His grandfather's sister was a Queen of Siam, his father is a well known international lawyer and vice-president of the International Academy of Human Rights. Somtow was educated at Eton and Cambridge, and his first career was in music. In the 1970s (while he was still in college) his works were being performed on four continents and he was named representative of Thailand to the Asian Composer's League and to the International Music Commission of UNESCO. His avant-garde compositions caused controversy and scandal in his native country, and a severe case of musical burnout in the late 1970s precipitated his entry into a second career - that of author.
He began writing science fiction, but soon started to invade other fields of writing, with some 40 books out now, including the clasic horror novel Vampire Junction, which defined the "rock and roll vampire" concept for the 80s, the Riverrun Trilogy ("the finest new series of the 90's" - Locus) and the semi-autobiographical memoir Jasmine Nights. He has won or been nominated for dozens of major awards including the Bram Stoker Award, the John W. Campbell Award, the Hugo Award, and the World Fantasy Award.
Somtow has also made some incursions into filmmaking, directing the cult classic The Laughing Dead and the award winning art film Ill Met by Moonlight.
He was Somtow Papinian Sucharitkul in Bangkok. His grandfather's sister was a Queen of Siam, his father is a well known international lawyer and vice-president of the International Academy of Human Rights. Somtow was educated at Eton and Cambridge, and his first career was in music. In the 1970s (while he was still in college) his works were being performed on four continents and he was named representative of Thailand to the Asian Composer's League and to the International Music Commission of UNESCO. His avant-garde compositions caused controversy and scandal in his native country, and a severe case of musical burnout in the late 1970s precipitated his entry into a second career - that of author.
He began writing science fiction, but soon started to invade other fields of writing, with some 40 books out now, including the clasic horror novel Vampire Junction, which defined the "rock and roll vampire" concept for the 80s, the Riverrun Trilogy ("the finest new series of the 90's" - Locus) and the semi-autobiographical memoir Jasmine Nights. He has won or been nominated for dozens of major awards including the Bram Stoker Award, the John W. Campbell Award, the Hugo Award, and the World Fantasy Award.
Somtow has also made some incursions into filmmaking, directing the cult classic The Laughing Dead and the award winning art film Ill Met by Moonlight.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 22, 2008
The Wizard’s Apprentice by S.P. Somtow 132 pages ~4/24/08 It's Hollywood, with shrimp-and-avocado pizza for those bored with the plain old Thai barbecued-chicken kind. Aaron has just discovered that his crush on the pneumatic Penelope is requited and is hurrying to the Mall doing amazing, magical things on his skateboard when Zap! chief-wizard Anaxagoras traps him in a time warp, explaining that Aaron really does do magic and should be his apprentice.
Aaron is given a mirror that reveals his true feelings about what it reflects; he also learns a dragon-making spell and a magic way to unstop toilets. But dragons are the bad stuff--the mean, hateful, insecure side of a wizard. Aaron's dragon, smog-fueled, expands to cover most of L.A.--until Aaron, having discovered that he doesn't really despise himself, lets it look in his mirror and the dragon dissipates. As Anaxagoras says, ecology is a subset of magic; and as the author says, the one true magic springs from the human heart. Lots of laughs and Hollywood outrageousness; perhaps a little slick, quick and glib, but still rather a sweet-hearted if somewhat dim romp in the ``Dragonflight'' series, by a mainstream SF author.
Aaron is given a mirror that reveals his true feelings about what it reflects; he also learns a dragon-making spell and a magic way to unstop toilets. But dragons are the bad stuff--the mean, hateful, insecure side of a wizard. Aaron's dragon, smog-fueled, expands to cover most of L.A.--until Aaron, having discovered that he doesn't really despise himself, lets it look in his mirror and the dragon dissipates. As Anaxagoras says, ecology is a subset of magic; and as the author says, the one true magic springs from the human heart. Lots of laughs and Hollywood outrageousness; perhaps a little slick, quick and glib, but still rather a sweet-hearted if somewhat dim romp in the ``Dragonflight'' series, by a mainstream SF author.
November 7, 2010
A typical coming-of-age story of a boy who has magical powers. Somehow I expected a little bit more of the author, after reading "The Vampire's beautiful daughter", which I loved.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 24, 2013
I like this book! So many funny stuffs
January 28, 2014
Meh...
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews