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The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica #1
Here, There Be Dragons
The Imaginarium Geographica
"What is it?" John asked.
The little man blinked and arched an eyebrow.
"It is the world, my boy," he said. "All the world, in ink and blood, vellum and parchment, leather and hide. It is the world, and it is yours to save or lose."
An unusual murder brings together three strangers, John, Jack, and Charles, on a rainy night in London during the first World War. An eccentric little man called Bert tells them that they are now the caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica -- an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale. These lands, Bert claims, can be traveled to in his ship the Indigo Dragon, one of only seven vessels that is able to cross the Frontier between worlds into the Archipelago of Dreams.
Pursued by strange and terrifying creatures, the companions flee London aboard the Dragonship. Traveling to the very realm of the imagination itself, they must learn to overcome their fears and trust in one another if they are to defeat the dark forces that threaten the destiny of two worlds.
An extraordinary journey of myth, magic, and mystery, Here, There Be Dragons introduces James A. Owen as a formidable new talent.
"What is it?" John asked.
The little man blinked and arched an eyebrow.
"It is the world, my boy," he said. "All the world, in ink and blood, vellum and parchment, leather and hide. It is the world, and it is yours to save or lose."
An unusual murder brings together three strangers, John, Jack, and Charles, on a rainy night in London during the first World War. An eccentric little man called Bert tells them that they are now the caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica -- an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale. These lands, Bert claims, can be traveled to in his ship the Indigo Dragon, one of only seven vessels that is able to cross the Frontier between worlds into the Archipelago of Dreams.
Pursued by strange and terrifying creatures, the companions flee London aboard the Dragonship. Traveling to the very realm of the imagination itself, they must learn to overcome their fears and trust in one another if they are to defeat the dark forces that threaten the destiny of two worlds.
An extraordinary journey of myth, magic, and mystery, Here, There Be Dragons introduces James A. Owen as a formidable new talent.
326 pages, Hardcover
First published September 26, 2006
240 people are currently reading
19671 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,264 reviews
June 26, 2011
Can I give above a 5-star? Because if I could, I would. This book was fantastic! It has a twist at the end, and once you read it, you go "Omigosh, are you serious? How did I not pick up on that?!" and suddenly you love this book all the more. The idea of a sort of parallel universe has been done before, but Owen has done an excellent job with originality. Read it, you will love it, I'm positive!
December 11, 2017
Library edition...to the head of the line it goes!
This book started out well and I was immediately interested. The characters are interesting and the story begins to roll along laying out the basic idea and the overriding theme. Unfortunately it's not long before the book bogs down...I suppose overwhelmed by it's own "wonder".
I know that some love this (these) books. I can even see why, I know there are readers who will be totally enamored by the very things that finally caused the book to fall out of my "good books" (possibly a double meaning there). I think it might be said of this book and my reaction to it that I just "missed the magic". In the end I wasn't sucked into the "feel" of the book. There came a time in the book about when they reached the Keep of Time (he said mysteriously being careful not to reveal more than the name lest there be a spoiler) that I knew I was fading out. When you're reading a book and your mind keeps wandering off to what you plan to read next, when you should start dinner, or whether you've checked the mail today or not, something's wrong.
I suspect many of you will find the setting and the idea behind the book familiar. It has been done before. You'll also recognize the characters (or at least who they're supposed to be) as you come across them, though they've been played fast and loose with at times(***update a couple of years after the original review*** Oops. "played fast and loose with"??? I seem to have attempted murder on my "grammar" there, sorry***). I got through the book, but I skipped forward several times. The author is doing his best to bring you into his world and get you to "know" his characters. Unfortunately this often devolves into long, pointless conversations that sometimes attempt to move beyond plot exposition into "cuteness" and humor. Too often however they manage to only be slow, boring, or even silly and annoying.
I suppose I should look at this as a youth book and accept that as the reason for the above, but I see no reason to talk down to YA readers???
The above is of course (as always) only my opinion. I know many liked this book and it's sequels greatly, I however do not. I didn't get into this volume, was glad to see it end and don't plan to follow it up. If it's a book you like I'm happy for you, please enjoy. Not for me however. I didn't hate it, mostly I was only left cold and bored by it.
This book started out well and I was immediately interested. The characters are interesting and the story begins to roll along laying out the basic idea and the overriding theme. Unfortunately it's not long before the book bogs down...I suppose overwhelmed by it's own "wonder".
I know that some love this (these) books. I can even see why, I know there are readers who will be totally enamored by the very things that finally caused the book to fall out of my "good books" (possibly a double meaning there). I think it might be said of this book and my reaction to it that I just "missed the magic". In the end I wasn't sucked into the "feel" of the book. There came a time in the book about when they reached the Keep of Time (he said mysteriously being careful not to reveal more than the name lest there be a spoiler) that I knew I was fading out. When you're reading a book and your mind keeps wandering off to what you plan to read next, when you should start dinner, or whether you've checked the mail today or not, something's wrong.
I suspect many of you will find the setting and the idea behind the book familiar. It has been done before. You'll also recognize the characters (or at least who they're supposed to be) as you come across them, though they've been played fast and loose with at times(***update a couple of years after the original review*** Oops. "played fast and loose with"??? I seem to have attempted murder on my "grammar" there, sorry***). I got through the book, but I skipped forward several times. The author is doing his best to bring you into his world and get you to "know" his characters. Unfortunately this often devolves into long, pointless conversations that sometimes attempt to move beyond plot exposition into "cuteness" and humor. Too often however they manage to only be slow, boring, or even silly and annoying.
I suppose I should look at this as a youth book and accept that as the reason for the above, but I see no reason to talk down to YA readers???
The above is of course (as always) only my opinion. I know many liked this book and it's sequels greatly, I however do not. I didn't get into this volume, was glad to see it end and don't plan to follow it up. If it's a book you like I'm happy for you, please enjoy. Not for me however. I didn't hate it, mostly I was only left cold and bored by it.
May 22, 2012
Well I've decided: having read far too many reviews of this that simply pointed out the flat characterisation and the unoriginal nature of this book that it needs a bit of a lift from yours truly. So here is my attempt.
Now as I mentioned before (once upon a time) I love fairytales, mythology and legends. That is why I appreciated the magical sparkle of this book. Some might state that this book is unoriginal and flat however I personally found it to contain an original premise and interesting enough characters to drive the plot. Perhaps it would not stand up to scrutiny like some of the other books I have rated five stars in terms of depth. However I rate this as a five star novel due to the combination of incredible plot and the fact that an author has actually written a novel that appealed to me directly.
I did not find James A. Owen's work condescending, although others have differed in their opinion (I find that when it comes to this novel readers hold either a love-it or hate-it opinion). After all when you come to truly love a novel (as when you love a person) you readily ignore any obvious flaws. Failing to love however makes those flaws blatantly obvious. And if no one disagrees with you then there may be something wrong with you (for instance you could be a dictator ruling with an iron fist).
This novel may just, however, be one that appeals more to those life-long fans of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings and the other classics of that era. Someone noted that this work seems to be a collection of those classics and questioned how the characters would know their books would become classics. Of course the reviewer is valid in their questioning logic yet I respectfully disagree with their original starting point. This is not a book about the classics but rather is a book which hints at how those classics were given life. Which is a different thing from my perspective.
All the ideas in this work are perhaps why some state it is an unoriginal book. The plot follows three young friends as they are brought into the understanding of the existence of the Archipelago of Dreams. This is a land of fantasy linked to the real world and made up (as the name suggests - duh) of dreams and ideas. Here the mythological creatures, fairytales and legends exist. Such as King Arthur for instance. Also in this world exist the characters out of the books such as Captain Nemo (which is Owen's way of saying the authors were inspired by the characters in the Archipelago - which rather than being unimaginative I found rather clever).
It was interesting thinking about the plot just now. I believe that it would provide a very interesting case study in the idea of the mono-mythic story. You have the typical evil versus good with evil being defeated. Of course I believe (as the story suggests) that there is one narrative underlying all of society and life in which supernatural evil is defeated ultimately and all our stories spring from that. As such I have a love of the traditional epic fantasy styles and fairytale styles where good triumphs and the stories aren't focused on super gritty realism and too complicated plot threads.
If you like what I've said then give this book a chance. It's a little unknown book compared to some and it is nice to find a little gem that no one has heard of that you can recommend to other people and get them excited about. Much better than a super hyped up novel that does not deliver I believe.
Now as I mentioned before (once upon a time) I love fairytales, mythology and legends. That is why I appreciated the magical sparkle of this book. Some might state that this book is unoriginal and flat however I personally found it to contain an original premise and interesting enough characters to drive the plot. Perhaps it would not stand up to scrutiny like some of the other books I have rated five stars in terms of depth. However I rate this as a five star novel due to the combination of incredible plot and the fact that an author has actually written a novel that appealed to me directly.
I did not find James A. Owen's work condescending, although others have differed in their opinion (I find that when it comes to this novel readers hold either a love-it or hate-it opinion). After all when you come to truly love a novel (as when you love a person) you readily ignore any obvious flaws. Failing to love however makes those flaws blatantly obvious. And if no one disagrees with you then there may be something wrong with you (for instance you could be a dictator ruling with an iron fist).
This novel may just, however, be one that appeals more to those life-long fans of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings and the other classics of that era. Someone noted that this work seems to be a collection of those classics and questioned how the characters would know their books would become classics. Of course the reviewer is valid in their questioning logic yet I respectfully disagree with their original starting point. This is not a book about the classics but rather is a book which hints at how those classics were given life. Which is a different thing from my perspective.
All the ideas in this work are perhaps why some state it is an unoriginal book. The plot follows three young friends as they are brought into the understanding of the existence of the Archipelago of Dreams. This is a land of fantasy linked to the real world and made up (as the name suggests - duh) of dreams and ideas. Here the mythological creatures, fairytales and legends exist. Such as King Arthur for instance. Also in this world exist the characters out of the books such as Captain Nemo (which is Owen's way of saying the authors were inspired by the characters in the Archipelago - which rather than being unimaginative I found rather clever).
It was interesting thinking about the plot just now. I believe that it would provide a very interesting case study in the idea of the mono-mythic story. You have the typical evil versus good with evil being defeated. Of course I believe (as the story suggests) that there is one narrative underlying all of society and life in which supernatural evil is defeated ultimately and all our stories spring from that. As such I have a love of the traditional epic fantasy styles and fairytale styles where good triumphs and the stories aren't focused on super gritty realism and too complicated plot threads.
If you like what I've said then give this book a chance. It's a little unknown book compared to some and it is nice to find a little gem that no one has heard of that you can recommend to other people and get them excited about. Much better than a super hyped up novel that does not deliver I believe.
May 21, 2018
Two stars for awesome book design.
A rainy night in London, 1917 –
Three young strangers, who all happen to be Oxford men, meet in police custody. They were all rumored to be students of the ancient-languages professor who was found murdered in his study earlier that night.
Our POV character for most of the book goes by John. He is home from the War at the moment, but suffers debilitating flashbacks of the trenches. John was married recently, but thinks about his wife exactly once in the entire book. He also claims to have been a lazy student.
He finds himself stuck with Charles, a sarcastic fussbudget who wears glasses, and Jack, who’s a bit younger and has the reasoning ability of the average hammerhead shark. When the police question them and realize that none of the three could have been the killer or known about the attack, the three youths retreat to a private club where Charles has admittance. The club is on 22B Baker Street, which will tell you a lot about what kind of story we’re in for.
No sooner have they settled in when a strangely-dressed man with a funny mustache bursts in and tells them that they’re being hunted by evil fantastical creatures. The creatures want the mysterious atlas that the dead professor bequeathed to John.
The stranger—Bert—brings the three lads aboard his old-fashioned ship, the Indigo Dragon, and they sail from London right into another world: the so-called Archipelago of Dreams, where all myths are true…and the people are entangled in a dynastic struggle.
Content Advisory
Violence: The professor at the beginning gets his throat cut. There is a big battle with apparently no notable casualties, except a character whom the author expects us to care about who gets blown up with a grenade. No gore to speak of.
Sex: In one exceptionally contrived scene, when the travelers have escaped the wreck of their ship and wash ashore upon an island, a male character and a female character wake up tangled suggestively in each other’s limbs. She extracts herself from him, embarrassed, and he informs her that she “look[s] good in wet clothes.”
Language: A few minor swears such as “hell,” “damn,” and “bloody.”
Substance Abuse: Some beer-drinking. Nobody gets hammered.
Nightmare Fuel: The Winter King captures the faun crew of the Indigo Dragon and feeds them to his crew. (Not shown, thank Aslan). I will be ranting about this later.
The Archipelago of Dead Trends
Here, There Be Dragons was recommended to me ages ago by two former friends from my homeschool group, one of whom blurted out the twist, which is the only thing that made me want to read it anyway. With some books, the journey matters more than the destination; the question is not so much how it ends as how it reaches that point.
Unfortunately, the twist is much, much cooler than the book that contains it, and the three historical figures involved deserved better.
WARNING: HERE, THERE BE SPOILERS.
Conclusions
Here, There Be Dragons is a very silly book that managed to make timeless writers dated, and has no understanding of its own subject matter. Its sole saving grace are the illustrations and fonts, which are very aesthetically pleasing. But the novel itself is pompous fluff that has not aged well. Read if you want something ridiculous to laugh at, but not recommended for sincere enjoyment.
A rainy night in London, 1917 –
Three young strangers, who all happen to be Oxford men, meet in police custody. They were all rumored to be students of the ancient-languages professor who was found murdered in his study earlier that night.
Our POV character for most of the book goes by John. He is home from the War at the moment, but suffers debilitating flashbacks of the trenches. John was married recently, but thinks about his wife exactly once in the entire book. He also claims to have been a lazy student.
He finds himself stuck with Charles, a sarcastic fussbudget who wears glasses, and Jack, who’s a bit younger and has the reasoning ability of the average hammerhead shark. When the police question them and realize that none of the three could have been the killer or known about the attack, the three youths retreat to a private club where Charles has admittance. The club is on 22B Baker Street, which will tell you a lot about what kind of story we’re in for.
No sooner have they settled in when a strangely-dressed man with a funny mustache bursts in and tells them that they’re being hunted by evil fantastical creatures. The creatures want the mysterious atlas that the dead professor bequeathed to John.
The stranger—Bert—brings the three lads aboard his old-fashioned ship, the Indigo Dragon, and they sail from London right into another world: the so-called Archipelago of Dreams, where all myths are true…and the people are entangled in a dynastic struggle.
Content Advisory
Violence: The professor at the beginning gets his throat cut. There is a big battle with apparently no notable casualties, except a character whom the author expects us to care about who gets blown up with a grenade. No gore to speak of.
Sex: In one exceptionally contrived scene, when the travelers have escaped the wreck of their ship and wash ashore upon an island, a male character and a female character wake up tangled suggestively in each other’s limbs. She extracts herself from him, embarrassed, and he informs her that she “look[s] good in wet clothes.”
Language: A few minor swears such as “hell,” “damn,” and “bloody.”
Substance Abuse: Some beer-drinking. Nobody gets hammered.
Nightmare Fuel: The Winter King captures the faun crew of the Indigo Dragon and feeds them to his crew. (Not shown, thank Aslan). I will be ranting about this later.
The Archipelago of Dead Trends
Here, There Be Dragons was recommended to me ages ago by two former friends from my homeschool group, one of whom blurted out the twist, which is the only thing that made me want to read it anyway. With some books, the journey matters more than the destination; the question is not so much how it ends as how it reaches that point.
Unfortunately, the twist is much, much cooler than the book that contains it, and the three historical figures involved deserved better.
WARNING: HERE, THERE BE SPOILERS.
Conclusions
Here, There Be Dragons is a very silly book that managed to make timeless writers dated, and has no understanding of its own subject matter. Its sole saving grace are the illustrations and fonts, which are very aesthetically pleasing. But the novel itself is pompous fluff that has not aged well. Read if you want something ridiculous to laugh at, but not recommended for sincere enjoyment.
March 4, 2014
There's a quote by C.S. Lewis which says “A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest.” I like this quote. I like this quote a lot. What it says to me is that just because you're writing for a child doesn't mean you have to "dumb" the story down or condescend to your readers.
Unfortunately, that's exactly what James A. Owen does here. Now, that isn't to say if you have a 12 year old who is interested in fantasy and you want to get them started on something quick and easy to read then you could certainly do worse than this. Then again, you could do better, too. The plot, which follows three new "caretakers" of the Imaginarium Geographica, an atlas of the real locations of mythical lands. The lands, though, are under attack by an evil usurper to the crown who must be stopped! Pretty standard fair, really. By the time Captain Nemo shows up in the Nautilus you’ve been expecting him for a while.
Which is part of the problem.
A sophisticated fantasy reader will see most of the twists and turns coming, especially the ones which are laid out pretty simply. Sure, that may not be such a stretch except when you’re figuring it out so far ahead of the characters that it ceases to be a fun read.
Moving on from this quibble is the idea that none of the magic systems make coherent sense. I understand that magic has it’s own logic, and we’re playing with time travel here as well, but part of what makes Tolkien and every other good fantasy writer work is that their magic and world building makes sense. The rules are not arbitrary, showing up when you need them to advance the plot. And yet, Owen not only pulls that stunt, he leaves the ending to a Dragon Ex Machina which comes out of nowhere.
I think my biggest problem with this book is that the concept is fun. It could be really clever if handled properly, but instead, it seems self-congratulatory and filled with ideas which should have been cut out after the first draft, the kind of ideas which I understand you need to get down on paper because they’re fun, but once you get them out, you should be discerning enough to understand they belong in a file of “cool things which don’t work in an actual story.”
By the time you finish, you realize the ghosts of Tolkien, Lewis and H.G. Wells would be spinning in their graves if they knew what was being perpetrated in their names. Your better bet would be to go and read their works in the original, especially if you’re young and just starting out reading fantasy.
Unfortunately, that's exactly what James A. Owen does here. Now, that isn't to say if you have a 12 year old who is interested in fantasy and you want to get them started on something quick and easy to read then you could certainly do worse than this. Then again, you could do better, too. The plot, which follows three new "caretakers" of the Imaginarium Geographica, an atlas of the real locations of mythical lands. The lands, though, are under attack by an evil usurper to the crown who must be stopped! Pretty standard fair, really. By the time Captain Nemo shows up in the Nautilus you’ve been expecting him for a while.
Which is part of the problem.
A sophisticated fantasy reader will see most of the twists and turns coming, especially the ones which are laid out pretty simply. Sure, that may not be such a stretch except when you’re figuring it out so far ahead of the characters that it ceases to be a fun read.
Moving on from this quibble is the idea that none of the magic systems make coherent sense. I understand that magic has it’s own logic, and we’re playing with time travel here as well, but part of what makes Tolkien and every other good fantasy writer work is that their magic and world building makes sense. The rules are not arbitrary, showing up when you need them to advance the plot. And yet, Owen not only pulls that stunt, he leaves the ending to a Dragon Ex Machina which comes out of nowhere.
I think my biggest problem with this book is that the concept is fun. It could be really clever if handled properly, but instead, it seems self-congratulatory and filled with ideas which should have been cut out after the first draft, the kind of ideas which I understand you need to get down on paper because they’re fun, but once you get them out, you should be discerning enough to understand they belong in a file of “cool things which don’t work in an actual story.”
By the time you finish, you realize the ghosts of Tolkien, Lewis and H.G. Wells would be spinning in their graves if they knew what was being perpetrated in their names. Your better bet would be to go and read their works in the original, especially if you’re young and just starting out reading fantasy.
May 23, 2012
Even before I begin to write this review, I know right away that no matter what I say, I'll never be able to do this book justice. I'll try, though.
First, a little background :
"An unusual murder brings together three strangers, John, Jack, and Charles, on a rainy night in London during the first World War. An eccentric little man called Bert tells them that they are now the caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica -- an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale. These lands, Bert claims, can be traveled to in his ship the Indigo Dragon, one of only seven vessels that is able to cross the Frontier between our world and the Archipelago of Dreams.
Pursued by strange and terrifying creatures, the companions flee London aboard the Dragonship. Traveling to the very realm of the imagination itself, they must learn to overcome their fears and trust in one another if they are to defeat the dark forces that threaten the destiny of two worlds."
Now, before you get any false ideas, do not go into the book expecting an unique and original story. Seeing as the story is set in a place where all the lands (ever written about in fiction), exist, you'll probably find yourself going, "Hey, haven't I read this somewhere, before?", more than once. But do not lose heart - the ending will explain everything.
The main attraction of this book is the author's writing. His love for his work, the world he is building and its characters, shines through in every page. I can give no higher praise.
Here, there be Dragons is fantasy in its purest form. A grand old adventure on a ship over foreign seas, with magic, dragons, elves, dwarves, goblins, trolls and many more! In these days where "fantasy" is synonymous with vampires and werewolves (ALWAYS with a bit romance thrown in) this book comes as a wonderful breath of fresh air!
And, the ending! Oh, the ending! Sheer cheek, and sheer brilliance on the author's part! :D Without giving anything away, I can safely say that it blew me away! The fantasy geek in me was thrilled to bits! :D
I cannot recommend this book enough to everybody. Fantasy lovers, this one's for you :)
First, a little background :
"An unusual murder brings together three strangers, John, Jack, and Charles, on a rainy night in London during the first World War. An eccentric little man called Bert tells them that they are now the caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica -- an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale. These lands, Bert claims, can be traveled to in his ship the Indigo Dragon, one of only seven vessels that is able to cross the Frontier between our world and the Archipelago of Dreams.
Pursued by strange and terrifying creatures, the companions flee London aboard the Dragonship. Traveling to the very realm of the imagination itself, they must learn to overcome their fears and trust in one another if they are to defeat the dark forces that threaten the destiny of two worlds."
Now, before you get any false ideas, do not go into the book expecting an unique and original story. Seeing as the story is set in a place where all the lands (ever written about in fiction), exist, you'll probably find yourself going, "Hey, haven't I read this somewhere, before?", more than once. But do not lose heart - the ending will explain everything.
The main attraction of this book is the author's writing. His love for his work, the world he is building and its characters, shines through in every page. I can give no higher praise.
Here, there be Dragons is fantasy in its purest form. A grand old adventure on a ship over foreign seas, with magic, dragons, elves, dwarves, goblins, trolls and many more! In these days where "fantasy" is synonymous with vampires and werewolves (ALWAYS with a bit romance thrown in) this book comes as a wonderful breath of fresh air!
And, the ending! Oh, the ending! Sheer cheek, and sheer brilliance on the author's part! :D Without giving anything away, I can safely say that it blew me away! The fantasy geek in me was thrilled to bits! :D
I cannot recommend this book enough to everybody. Fantasy lovers, this one's for you :)
April 9, 2021
The intention of this book is really interesting, to base a story on stories and literary authors and characters, and then thrust them into an imaginary world where fiction meets reality. The ideas and references are fun, and definitely add to the enjoyment for a reader who's read widely, and there are fantastically fun illustrations done by the author too.
Although I think the concept of this one is solid, I didn't think the plot or characters were developed enough. This felt like a very simplistic version of a lot of stories squished together, and I wanted a bit more originality and a bit more depth. There's a lot of moments where a great idea is glimpsed, but not thoroughly explored, and there are also quite a few moments I wanted to get to know Jack, John and Charles more.
The influence of many great writers is fun to spot references to, however the pacing is a bit too fast on the action and lacking on the real substance. I believe it's a series so possibly it gets more depth as it goes, but for me it just didn't hold my attention as much as I wanted. 2*s
Although I think the concept of this one is solid, I didn't think the plot or characters were developed enough. This felt like a very simplistic version of a lot of stories squished together, and I wanted a bit more originality and a bit more depth. There's a lot of moments where a great idea is glimpsed, but not thoroughly explored, and there are also quite a few moments I wanted to get to know Jack, John and Charles more.
The influence of many great writers is fun to spot references to, however the pacing is a bit too fast on the action and lacking on the real substance. I believe it's a series so possibly it gets more depth as it goes, but for me it just didn't hold my attention as much as I wanted. 2*s
November 9, 2020
I am very disappointed in this audiobook. I loved the beginning – so much. James Langton was charming as a reader. No, really – charming. He read in a neutral, British-flavored voice, which perfectly set off the tones and accents he used for the characters, each distinctive and enjoyable. I didn't realize that the physical book is illustrated; perhaps the characterizations balance that loss. (I hate discovering that books I've gotten in audio are illustrated. It's such a cheat.)
I enjoyed the heck out of how the story began. The Imaginarium Geographica (is that correct Latin? It doesn't feel right) allows for cameos by characters like Captain Nemo; it recalled Silverlock more than the other similarly-themed novella I listened to earlier this year, Legendarium. Unlike the latter, this did not aim primarily for humor (and aim low at that), and I did not loathe the characters (until I found out who they were supposed to be). Everything in the opening chapters clicked in all kinds of ways. Nice idea, nice storytelling, just lots of fun. The reveal of the other identity of the Green Knight is lovely. The repeated motif of characters waving farewell as the heroes move on to the next stage of their adventure was nice. I loved some bits:
"What's that [constellation], there?" asked Charles, pointing. "The line that looks like Orion's Belt?"
"It's Orion's Belt," said Artus.
"Ah," said Charles.
Successful humor.
"A smile began to Cheshire over his face" – nice wordplay.
"I say we just kill him and spare ourselves the trouble of watching our backs."
"Seconded," said Charles.
"Kind of bloodthirsty, don't you think, Charles?" said John.
"I'm an editor," said Charles. "I have to make decisions like that all the time."
I love that.
It was because of stuff like that there that I had five stars dancing in my head for several chapters.
And yet even toward the beginning I questioned some things. Three young men find themselves on a dragon-prowed ship sailing out of London and this world in 1917, and are stunned to discover that the ship's crew is made up of fauns. So agile and sure-footed, the captain of the ship (Aven) says. But… perhaps it's apocryphal that sailor often went barefoot so as not to slip? The author explains that, like mountain goats, the fauns are remarkably nimble even in the midst of a storm … I don't know. Maybe cloven hooves have better traction, even on water-slicked wooden decking.
And then the ship is captured, and all the fauns taken prisoner, and it is known that their status will be going from "crew" to "entrée" – and our heroes barely twitch. This is the first time it becomes clear that there are "lesser races" in this world, and I found that distinctly uncomfortable.
Something else I thought odd... or, rather, distasteful… Okay. In a PBS piece on Harper Lee, Oprah Winfrey talks about how astounding it was that "little Harper Lee" – with accompanying hand gesture indicating diminutiveness – had the courage to tackle Southern racism in the midst of the fight for civil rights. I'll talk about Harper Lee, at length and adoringly, elsewhere; I likely won't talk about Oprah anywhere ever again, and not just because she ticked me off here by seeming to equate lack of height with lack of courage. This is relevant, even apart from the fact that I'm short, because here are a couple of remarks from Here, There Be Dragons: "Their short stature made them rather disagreeable". The enmity between elves and dwarves? "It's a height thing". I think there was more – and it's particularly irritating in that this is a book aimed at young adults, many of whom aren't very tall, after all.
I probably bring up Chekhov and his gun more often than I ought, but that's because it's a kind of big obvious thing, and when it's missed it leaves a vague feeling of incompleteness. This time the gun was a guy. Very early on, Captain Aven is hissing and spitting about a Caretaker called Jamie who abandoned the Imagninarium for "playacting in Kensington Gardens", which in light of the fact that 99.99% of Caretakers named were renowned authors made me think of J.M. Barrie. I had two guesses up in the air: Barrie, or – given the sheer venom from Aven – kin; her brother, perhaps. At the end it was revealed at last that it was indeed Barrie … and that was it. I see now that there are several other books in this series; maybe Jamie shows up in one of those. But there should have been something in here, because good grief was he ever given a dramatic build-up. I've never heard anything about him to make me expect it: why was he such a rebel? I guess I'll never know.
When I began to roll my eyes, those five stars I envisioned near the beginning began to fade, one by one. The characters simply had no sense. Example: A door left open with disastrous consequences is … still left open even after the disastrous consequences.
Our hero John stresses about how terrible a student he was, because he did not take his apprenticeship as a Caretaker seriously, not seeing much point in studying dead languages when there was a war on and he was suffering from shell shock. Why did he never see much point? Because he was never told why it was important. It was even worse than all those romances where the two main characters go through hell simply because they don't talk to each other. If someone had simply told John a little bit of what was going on … there would be no book.
And I will very much come back to that "terrible student" thing.
That aimed-at-young-adults thing I mentioned earlier became more and more obvious the further I got. There was a lightness of tone at what were to me surprising moments which I can only attribute to the intended reading level. There aren't really any teeth to the book. It begins with a murder, and with a young man on leave from WWI trying to cope with shell shock, so as events spun out I expected there to be patches of grim reality. And – spoiler alert – there really weren't. Well, one: a secondary character died, and it was because of a rather arrogant mistake made by one of the primary characters. But it's okay, because the young man whose fault it was redeems himself spectacularly. Based on memories of Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain I rather thought that the redemption would involve the young man losing, or at least risking losing, his life, but no. And then it was revealed that that one death was the single solitary "good guy" casualty in the big battle, although the description made it sound like a bloodbath.
There was one bit that made one eyebrow Spock up: our heroes are standing in front of a magical door with no apparent way in, but bordered by carving.
"It says, basically, 'declare allegiance and be welcomed'."
"Well, doesn't it perhaps mean that the magic word that opens the door is 'allegiance'," said Jack, "in Elvish?"
"That's a stupid idea," said John. "Then anyone who spoke Elvish could get in."
Have I mentioned how important The Lord of the Rings is to me?
I'll come back to that, too.
As I listened to that bit, I see-sawed between "Heh, cute" and "Come here and I will slap you so hard you'll see all the stars I'm not giving your book". Since I'm bent on spoilerizing this book, I will go ahead and say that towards the end, as Jack and John and Charles were about to sign their names in the endpapers of the book, I made a note to the effect that Jack had bloody well better not be J.R.R. Tolkien. Well, he wasn't. He was C.S. Lewis. (I didn't remember that Lewis was called Jack.)
John was Tolkien.
(For some reason I did have a memory that he was called Jack.) From biography.com: he got a "first-class degree at Exeter College, specializing in Anglo-Saxon and Germanic languages and classic literature." I could be wrong, but that doesn't sound like "terrible student" to me.
And here comes another reference to another book I listened to recently: The Stress of Her Regard. In that book, Byron and Shelley and Keats are characters, and the concept of the novel is that all of the blaze of genius in these three poets is down not to inborn talent, but … vampires. I found that as offensive and nauseating as I find the "glover's son couldn't have written Shakespeare" thing, and even the "clearly aliens built everything spectacular" thing. The more I think about it the more annoyed I am by the use of Tolkien as a character in this book (and Lewis) (and in fact, now I come to think about it, every other author mentioned), not only because these portrayals of Tolkien and Lewis were far from flattering (slanderous, if anything), but because it ends on a note of "hey, what a great idea, I'm going to transcribe accounts of my adventures in the guise of fantasies – like other Caretakers who became famous authors doing so!"
No.
I enjoyed the heck out of how the story began. The Imaginarium Geographica (is that correct Latin? It doesn't feel right) allows for cameos by characters like Captain Nemo; it recalled Silverlock more than the other similarly-themed novella I listened to earlier this year, Legendarium. Unlike the latter, this did not aim primarily for humor (and aim low at that), and I did not loathe the characters (until I found out who they were supposed to be). Everything in the opening chapters clicked in all kinds of ways. Nice idea, nice storytelling, just lots of fun. The reveal of the other identity of the Green Knight is lovely. The repeated motif of characters waving farewell as the heroes move on to the next stage of their adventure was nice. I loved some bits:
"What's that [constellation], there?" asked Charles, pointing. "The line that looks like Orion's Belt?"
"It's Orion's Belt," said Artus.
"Ah," said Charles.
Successful humor.
"A smile began to Cheshire over his face" – nice wordplay.
"I say we just kill him and spare ourselves the trouble of watching our backs."
"Seconded," said Charles.
"Kind of bloodthirsty, don't you think, Charles?" said John.
"I'm an editor," said Charles. "I have to make decisions like that all the time."
I love that.
It was because of stuff like that there that I had five stars dancing in my head for several chapters.
And yet even toward the beginning I questioned some things. Three young men find themselves on a dragon-prowed ship sailing out of London and this world in 1917, and are stunned to discover that the ship's crew is made up of fauns. So agile and sure-footed, the captain of the ship (Aven) says. But… perhaps it's apocryphal that sailor often went barefoot so as not to slip? The author explains that, like mountain goats, the fauns are remarkably nimble even in the midst of a storm … I don't know. Maybe cloven hooves have better traction, even on water-slicked wooden decking.
And then the ship is captured, and all the fauns taken prisoner, and it is known that their status will be going from "crew" to "entrée" – and our heroes barely twitch. This is the first time it becomes clear that there are "lesser races" in this world, and I found that distinctly uncomfortable.
Something else I thought odd... or, rather, distasteful… Okay. In a PBS piece on Harper Lee, Oprah Winfrey talks about how astounding it was that "little Harper Lee" – with accompanying hand gesture indicating diminutiveness – had the courage to tackle Southern racism in the midst of the fight for civil rights. I'll talk about Harper Lee, at length and adoringly, elsewhere; I likely won't talk about Oprah anywhere ever again, and not just because she ticked me off here by seeming to equate lack of height with lack of courage. This is relevant, even apart from the fact that I'm short, because here are a couple of remarks from Here, There Be Dragons: "Their short stature made them rather disagreeable". The enmity between elves and dwarves? "It's a height thing". I think there was more – and it's particularly irritating in that this is a book aimed at young adults, many of whom aren't very tall, after all.
I probably bring up Chekhov and his gun more often than I ought, but that's because it's a kind of big obvious thing, and when it's missed it leaves a vague feeling of incompleteness. This time the gun was a guy. Very early on, Captain Aven is hissing and spitting about a Caretaker called Jamie who abandoned the Imagninarium for "playacting in Kensington Gardens", which in light of the fact that 99.99% of Caretakers named were renowned authors made me think of J.M. Barrie. I had two guesses up in the air: Barrie, or – given the sheer venom from Aven – kin; her brother, perhaps. At the end it was revealed at last that it was indeed Barrie … and that was it. I see now that there are several other books in this series; maybe Jamie shows up in one of those. But there should have been something in here, because good grief was he ever given a dramatic build-up. I've never heard anything about him to make me expect it: why was he such a rebel? I guess I'll never know.
When I began to roll my eyes, those five stars I envisioned near the beginning began to fade, one by one. The characters simply had no sense. Example: A door left open with disastrous consequences is … still left open even after the disastrous consequences.
Our hero John stresses about how terrible a student he was, because he did not take his apprenticeship as a Caretaker seriously, not seeing much point in studying dead languages when there was a war on and he was suffering from shell shock. Why did he never see much point? Because he was never told why it was important. It was even worse than all those romances where the two main characters go through hell simply because they don't talk to each other. If someone had simply told John a little bit of what was going on … there would be no book.
And I will very much come back to that "terrible student" thing.
That aimed-at-young-adults thing I mentioned earlier became more and more obvious the further I got. There was a lightness of tone at what were to me surprising moments which I can only attribute to the intended reading level. There aren't really any teeth to the book. It begins with a murder, and with a young man on leave from WWI trying to cope with shell shock, so as events spun out I expected there to be patches of grim reality. And – spoiler alert – there really weren't. Well, one: a secondary character died, and it was because of a rather arrogant mistake made by one of the primary characters. But it's okay, because the young man whose fault it was redeems himself spectacularly. Based on memories of Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain I rather thought that the redemption would involve the young man losing, or at least risking losing, his life, but no. And then it was revealed that that one death was the single solitary "good guy" casualty in the big battle, although the description made it sound like a bloodbath.
There was one bit that made one eyebrow Spock up: our heroes are standing in front of a magical door with no apparent way in, but bordered by carving.
"It says, basically, 'declare allegiance and be welcomed'."
"Well, doesn't it perhaps mean that the magic word that opens the door is 'allegiance'," said Jack, "in Elvish?"
"That's a stupid idea," said John. "Then anyone who spoke Elvish could get in."
Have I mentioned how important The Lord of the Rings is to me?
I'll come back to that, too.
As I listened to that bit, I see-sawed between "Heh, cute" and "Come here and I will slap you so hard you'll see all the stars I'm not giving your book". Since I'm bent on spoilerizing this book, I will go ahead and say that towards the end, as Jack and John and Charles were about to sign their names in the endpapers of the book, I made a note to the effect that Jack had bloody well better not be J.R.R. Tolkien. Well, he wasn't. He was C.S. Lewis. (I didn't remember that Lewis was called Jack.)
John was Tolkien.
(For some reason I did have a memory that he was called Jack.) From biography.com: he got a "first-class degree at Exeter College, specializing in Anglo-Saxon and Germanic languages and classic literature." I could be wrong, but that doesn't sound like "terrible student" to me.
And here comes another reference to another book I listened to recently: The Stress of Her Regard. In that book, Byron and Shelley and Keats are characters, and the concept of the novel is that all of the blaze of genius in these three poets is down not to inborn talent, but … vampires. I found that as offensive and nauseating as I find the "glover's son couldn't have written Shakespeare" thing, and even the "clearly aliens built everything spectacular" thing. The more I think about it the more annoyed I am by the use of Tolkien as a character in this book (and Lewis) (and in fact, now I come to think about it, every other author mentioned), not only because these portrayals of Tolkien and Lewis were far from flattering (slanderous, if anything), but because it ends on a note of "hey, what a great idea, I'm going to transcribe accounts of my adventures in the guise of fantasies – like other Caretakers who became famous authors doing so!"
No.
September 12, 2007
Took a wonderful premise, and made a complete mess of it by making shallow characters, shirking on detail, and leaving it as took much of four piece puzzle plot.
The only positive point, is Trummler, the badger, who had more character in his left footpaw than the entire rest of the cast. Otherwise, amazing disappointment, though the art is sorta good. Do Not Buy. Check from the library at the most...if even that.
The only positive point, is Trummler, the badger, who had more character in his left footpaw than the entire rest of the cast. Otherwise, amazing disappointment, though the art is sorta good. Do Not Buy. Check from the library at the most...if even that.
October 17, 2015
James A. Owen took the words "What If", and created a wonderful series and how! He said what if the some of the world's greatest authors and playwrights such as William Shakespeare, Jules Vern, James Barrie, H.G. Wells, J.R.R Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams came up with their stories and plays not purely from imagination, but from very real events. Well he did just that in what is one of the hands-down best fantasy series out there. From the first page i was utterly captivated, John Jack and Charles have been appointed as caretakers of "The Imaginarium Geographica" or in English the Imaginary Geography which is a map, with John being the "Caretaker Principa" or Principal Caretaker. The IG is no ordinary map, it as the name may imply is a geography of Imaginary worlds and the people or creatures that live in them, Never, Never Land, check, Captain Nemo yep, the Weird Sisters, you betcha. It's all there..........and more, but only up to a certain point, this book is set in 1917, so anything after 1917 and this particular set of caretakers (I.E. the Harry Potter universe, and it's author J.K. Rowling) it's not there because it hasn't been created yet. This is such an excellent series, the characters are fascinating and they are based on real men. Their full names are revealed at the end of the book and for fantasy lovers it's quite a fun surprise. This book does not have a single bad point to it, nor does it have any failing points. In short this book is perfect. Additionally this book is further enhanced by Owen's wonderful illustrations, the detail in them is nothing short of incredible, the man is seriously talented. Illustrations in books aimed at older/YA readers can come across as childish, but not here. If you're a fantasy fan and even if you're not, i urge you to read this. This book and the whole series are among some of the most sparkling gems of the entire fantasy genre.
January 11, 2013
Here, There Be Dragons focuses on a group of travelers that start off in London and take a voyage to a place called the Archipelago of Dreams. A 'world' of different islands, races and people. There are three from out world as we know it. John, Jack and Charles. They are told by a man named Bert (another primary character) that they are to be Caretakers of a map called the Imaginarium Geographica.
Also in this story is Aven, Bert's daughter and ship captain, and Bug, a youth they meet at their first stop and who tags along as a stowaway and wants to be a knight. Together, these travelers set out to restore order to the Archipelago and to stop the Winter King (the evil tyrant of the story) from taking over and turning everything and everybody to shadow.
This story had me wavering. The story seems to copy a lot from other stories, books and characters (both fiction and non). Sometimes this bothered me, however, much of the reasoning for this is explained at the end and actually gave me a bit better an impression for the book. Plus James A Owen does mention and give credit to some of these after the story is over.
This turned out to be a fun adventure/fantasy story. Not a great novel but enjoyable nonetheless. I hope to be able to continue the series in the future.
Also in this story is Aven, Bert's daughter and ship captain, and Bug, a youth they meet at their first stop and who tags along as a stowaway and wants to be a knight. Together, these travelers set out to restore order to the Archipelago and to stop the Winter King (the evil tyrant of the story) from taking over and turning everything and everybody to shadow.
This story had me wavering. The story seems to copy a lot from other stories, books and characters (both fiction and non). Sometimes this bothered me, however, much of the reasoning for this is explained at the end and actually gave me a bit better an impression for the book. Plus James A Owen does mention and give credit to some of these after the story is over.
This turned out to be a fun adventure/fantasy story. Not a great novel but enjoyable nonetheless. I hope to be able to continue the series in the future.
April 13, 2020
Third read for the O.W.Ls ✔️ - Dragon Seminar
August 10, 2010
Pertama kali tertarik sama buku ini, tentu saja... karena di sini ada naga!
dan naga dalam cover buku ini "beda" dengan naga2 yang pernah saya lihat sepanjang hidup saya memainkan game, nonton film, maupun komik2 yang pernah memunculkan naga sebelum2nya...
ya.. "beda"
bahkan sempat merasa sedikit aneh dengan gambar naga ini, alih2 memiliki moncong seperti buaya aligator *begitulah rata2 naga yang nempel d benak saya*
http://www.playkon.com/uploads/2009/0...
Dengan moncong yang seperti paruh, naga dalam cover ini malah lebih mirip burung pelikan atau bangau yang anggun menurut saya :P ditambah rambut2nya yang melambai2... saya butuh waktu beberapa menit untuk menyadari bahwa itu memang bukan naga.. melainkan sebuah perahu :D
PENASARAN 100% dengan isi buku ini awalnya yang mendorong saya untuk membaca, pada awalnya versi aslinya (nyerah karena susah bgt inggrisnya >,<) dan begitu keluar terjemahannya langsung saya lanjut bacanya! penasaran dengan gambar cover... "kok kapal sih? maksudnya apa ya?" Sangat2 "beda" "out of the box" dari naga2 yang biasanya muncul dalam berbagai platform kisah fantasi. waktu itu sempet tanya2 mbak nat2 sedikit dan katanya: "kalo ngomongin fiksi fantasi mah ini lebih gelo lagi" >,< jadi makin penasaran...
Bisa ngebayangin ga, apa yang akan terjadi jika ternyata seluruh ranah di dunia legenda fiksi, mitos, fabel dan dongeng seperti:
Schlaraffenland
Ouroboros
Poictesme
Nah, dari 3 yang saya tampilkan saya hanya pernah mendengar tentang Ouroboros, karena berhubungan dengan nicholas flamel series... Itupun hanya sekedar pernah dengar...
Dari sini terlihat jelas keunggulan buku ini! James A Owen sangat cerdas memadu setiap kisah2 legenda yang ada, (bagi yang tidak terlalu mengikuti fantasi tidak perlu takut karena d sediakan sedikit catatan kaki pada setiap halaman yang berhubungan dengan legenda ternama).
Nah.. gimana? kebayang ga? kalau sudah pernah baca Nicholas Flamel Series pasti kebayang... namun, dalam IMG Here There Be Dragons ini, setiap kejadian yang sedang terjadi, benar2 memiliki sangkut paut yang akan sangat mencengangkan pembaca dalam tiap aksi, percakapan, humor(ada hitler ;)<---spoiler gak tu, dan lain2... Buku ini ibarat sebuah karya ULTIMATE yang wajib dimiliki oleh setiap penikmat fiksi fantasi.
bagaimana dengan yang tidak terlalu menyukai fiksi? Buku ini membahas tidak hanya hal2 yang berkaitan dengan dunia fiksi fantasi, tetapi legenda2 dunia seperti John Dee (gyaaa.. muncul lagi) Atlantis, dll dengan setting yang benar2 nyata dan sialnya kenyataan tersebut terseret hingga ke dunia fantasi.
3 orang pemuda lulusan Oxford, dipertemukan untuk menghadapi takdir mereka menjadi penjaga/ juru kunci dari Imaginarium Geographica. Mereka harus siap tidak siap, mau tidak mau, suka tidak suka, menghadapi dunia yang selama ini hanya ada dalam lembaran2 yang mereka pelajari di kampus. Bahkan Juru Kunci utama tidak sepenuhnya yakin ilmu yang ia pelajari akan berguna bagi kelangsungan hidupnya, bahasa celtic kuno, romawi kuno, Inggris kuno, bahkan bahasa yang lebih kuno dari usia peradaban tertua sekalipun! "namun pendeta yang mengasuhku setelah ayah meninggal, yang menanggung biaya pendidikanku, meyakini bahwa ilmu semacam ini, yah.. tidak praktis" "Aku mengerti" kata Clowes sambil mencatat di notesnya menggunakan sebatang grafit tumpul. "dan, ilmu seperti apakah yang disebutnya 'praktis'?" "perbankan" jawab John. "Perdagangan, semacamnya"
=D nyengir juga bcanya kalau tau siapa sebenarnya dia ini ;). "go find out by your self!"
Tanpa ba bi bu lagi saya ingin sedikit curhat betapa buku ini sangat pantas diberikan judul Here There Be Dragons!...
kemunculan naga..
yah.. itu yang saya tunggu2 setiap membalik halaman... "KAPAN NIH NAGANYA MUNCUL" :D hehe.. dan ketika para naga muncul... penantian saya tidak sia2... James A Owen sangat sukses menggambarkan keganasan, kebrutalan, keanggunan, ketangguhan, kegagahan dan segala macam pernak pernik pemikiran orang2 tentang naga yang "WOW"... :D
yah intinya ini buku yang okelah! :D
dan naga dalam cover buku ini "beda" dengan naga2 yang pernah saya lihat sepanjang hidup saya memainkan game, nonton film, maupun komik2 yang pernah memunculkan naga sebelum2nya...
ya.. "beda"
bahkan sempat merasa sedikit aneh dengan gambar naga ini, alih2 memiliki moncong seperti buaya aligator *begitulah rata2 naga yang nempel d benak saya*
http://www.playkon.com/uploads/2009/0...
Dengan moncong yang seperti paruh, naga dalam cover ini malah lebih mirip burung pelikan atau bangau yang anggun menurut saya :P ditambah rambut2nya yang melambai2... saya butuh waktu beberapa menit untuk menyadari bahwa itu memang bukan naga.. melainkan sebuah perahu :D
PENASARAN 100% dengan isi buku ini awalnya yang mendorong saya untuk membaca, pada awalnya versi aslinya (nyerah karena susah bgt inggrisnya >,<) dan begitu keluar terjemahannya langsung saya lanjut bacanya! penasaran dengan gambar cover... "kok kapal sih? maksudnya apa ya?" Sangat2 "beda" "out of the box" dari naga2 yang biasanya muncul dalam berbagai platform kisah fantasi. waktu itu sempet tanya2 mbak nat2 sedikit dan katanya: "kalo ngomongin fiksi fantasi mah ini lebih gelo lagi" >,< jadi makin penasaran...
Bisa ngebayangin ga, apa yang akan terjadi jika ternyata seluruh ranah di dunia legenda fiksi, mitos, fabel dan dongeng seperti:
Schlaraffenland
Ouroboros
Poictesme
Nah, dari 3 yang saya tampilkan saya hanya pernah mendengar tentang Ouroboros, karena berhubungan dengan nicholas flamel series... Itupun hanya sekedar pernah dengar...
Dari sini terlihat jelas keunggulan buku ini! James A Owen sangat cerdas memadu setiap kisah2 legenda yang ada, (bagi yang tidak terlalu mengikuti fantasi tidak perlu takut karena d sediakan sedikit catatan kaki pada setiap halaman yang berhubungan dengan legenda ternama).
Nah.. gimana? kebayang ga? kalau sudah pernah baca Nicholas Flamel Series pasti kebayang... namun, dalam IMG Here There Be Dragons ini, setiap kejadian yang sedang terjadi, benar2 memiliki sangkut paut yang akan sangat mencengangkan pembaca dalam tiap aksi, percakapan, humor(ada hitler ;)<---spoiler gak tu, dan lain2... Buku ini ibarat sebuah karya ULTIMATE yang wajib dimiliki oleh setiap penikmat fiksi fantasi.
bagaimana dengan yang tidak terlalu menyukai fiksi? Buku ini membahas tidak hanya hal2 yang berkaitan dengan dunia fiksi fantasi, tetapi legenda2 dunia seperti John Dee (gyaaa.. muncul lagi) Atlantis, dll dengan setting yang benar2 nyata dan sialnya kenyataan tersebut terseret hingga ke dunia fantasi.
3 orang pemuda lulusan Oxford, dipertemukan untuk menghadapi takdir mereka menjadi penjaga/ juru kunci dari Imaginarium Geographica. Mereka harus siap tidak siap, mau tidak mau, suka tidak suka, menghadapi dunia yang selama ini hanya ada dalam lembaran2 yang mereka pelajari di kampus. Bahkan Juru Kunci utama tidak sepenuhnya yakin ilmu yang ia pelajari akan berguna bagi kelangsungan hidupnya, bahasa celtic kuno, romawi kuno, Inggris kuno, bahkan bahasa yang lebih kuno dari usia peradaban tertua sekalipun! "namun pendeta yang mengasuhku setelah ayah meninggal, yang menanggung biaya pendidikanku, meyakini bahwa ilmu semacam ini, yah.. tidak praktis" "Aku mengerti" kata Clowes sambil mencatat di notesnya menggunakan sebatang grafit tumpul. "dan, ilmu seperti apakah yang disebutnya 'praktis'?" "perbankan" jawab John. "Perdagangan, semacamnya"
=D nyengir juga bcanya kalau tau siapa sebenarnya dia ini ;). "go find out by your self!"
Tanpa ba bi bu lagi saya ingin sedikit curhat betapa buku ini sangat pantas diberikan judul Here There Be Dragons!...
kemunculan naga..
yah.. itu yang saya tunggu2 setiap membalik halaman... "KAPAN NIH NAGANYA MUNCUL" :D hehe.. dan ketika para naga muncul... penantian saya tidak sia2... James A Owen sangat sukses menggambarkan keganasan, kebrutalan, keanggunan, ketangguhan, kegagahan dan segala macam pernak pernik pemikiran orang2 tentang naga yang "WOW"... :D
yah intinya ini buku yang okelah! :D
August 2, 2008
Personally I think those that ranked this low just didn't 'get it'. Yes, he used a ton of source material, but he wove it together into such an original, rich tapestry of an entirely new world. I mean, the Arthur legend side-by-side with Captain Nemo? Who would have thought it?
The surprise ending is just the icing on the cake to his easy to read, well-written novel that flows across the imagination like the sea that surrounds the Archipelago of Dreams.
I have also read the sequel, which did NOT disappoint this classic fantasy and fairy tale enthusiast, and I anxiously await the third this fall.
The surprise ending is just the icing on the cake to his easy to read, well-written novel that flows across the imagination like the sea that surrounds the Archipelago of Dreams.
I have also read the sequel, which did NOT disappoint this classic fantasy and fairy tale enthusiast, and I anxiously await the third this fall.
July 11, 2016
Bland, poorly-written, overwhelmingly stupid fan-fiction disguised as a novel that's clearly supposed to make fantasy nerds cream their pants from all the references but probably only made the author cream his pants while writing it. As a fantasy nerd, I was not impressed. Neat premise, sure, but terrible execution. I can't help but wonder who this is for. It is so poorly written, so pandering, so bland, so generic, so predictable, so stupid, so contrived, so utterly derivative that you'd need to be a kid to get any enjoyment out of it, and this is coming from an adult that reads a lot of kid's books. Not a single aspect of it could be called good writing by any standard.
Characters
The characters have exactly zero personality until the author needs to manufacture drama, and then they get angry with each other for absolutely no reason. Jack (C.S. Lewis) in particular is portrayed as a callous jerk, but only sometimes, when it's convenient and the author needs to add some tension to a boring scene. At the start of the book he really tears into John (Tolkien) for things that are clearly not his fault, and continues to take shots at him throughout the book when you're least expecting it and never for any legitimate reason. What the hell? Why? It's the most contrived crap I've ever read, and totally unnecessary. Like I said, it's manufactured drama. It's fake. It's false. Is this a novel or reality television?
Having fictionalized versions of beloved authors that are kind of bland is something I can totally understand. If your prose, world-building, plot, and secondary characters are all fantastic then you can easily get away with bland protagonists, and they're real people, so maybe you don't want to portray them as anything other than stereotypical upstanding Englishmen just to avoid controversy and to be respectful to their memory. But then why turn them into annoying drama queens at the drop of a hat?
It very much seems like the author tried the first method, realized his characters were completely two-dimensional and every other aspect of the book was so terrible that it didn't make up the difference, so he added a bunch of random "flavor" to them in the second draft that straight up doesn't make any sense and comes out of nowhere. Such poor character writing I have scarcely seen in my entire life. If you're a writer yourself this book is almost worth reading just as a crystal clear example of what not to do.
Plot
The plot is just generic magical nonsense. To give you an idea of how much the story cares for logical consistency, the seat of power in the Archipelago of Dreams originally became such not through military might, but because they grow fantastic apples and people really love good produce. As if someone with military might wouldn't just take over your land and your apples... It's said as an off-hand joke, sure, but it's representative of how much the book as a whole cares about having any kind of logical consistency, which is to say it doesn't care at all.
Some more extreme examples of complete logical failings:
The Winter King, the clever and powerful antagonist we're supposed to fear, steals a leather-wrapped book from our protagonists and then immediately sails away and sinks their ship without unwrapping the book to make sure it's the right one, which of course it isn't. I check my bag at McDonald's to make sure they got my order right before leaving and you can't even check to make sure your enemy didn't sneakily hand you the wrong book before sinking their ship and leaving them to drown?! The Winter King clearly has an intellectual disability and needs a legal guardian to look after him, because nobody who's that stupid is capable of looking after themselves. This book is secretly a post-modern meta-commentary about the mental health-care system (I wish).
And this happens right after one of the characters mentions that he purposefully didn't sink their ship when disabling it with cannon-fire because he really needs the book and can't have it sinking to the bottom of the ocean and getting lost forever, which it absolutely would have if the protagonists hadn't been rescued from drowning by a deus ex machina. Speaking of deus ex machinas, they seem to be the main way of moving the plot forward in this book, so get used to that.
The Winter King isn't the only dolt though. Our characters are deliberately trying to destroy the aforementioned book at this point, sailing to the original creator of the book so he can tell them how to destroy it when The Winter King boards their ship. But get this, they can't destroy it because it doesn't burn. Okay, but then why do they take great pains to keep it from getting wet? Have you tried getting it wet? Have you tried ripping the pages into a million pieces and scattering them to the winds? No, of course they haven't. That would make too much sense. The only character that does try to rip it is one of the bad guys, towards the very end of the book. It doesn't work of course, but the fact that it wasn't even tried is ridiculous. Lazy, lazy author.
And if it can't be destroyed, why do they not think to throw it in the damn ocean which, as they just pointed out, would keep it out of The Winter King's hands? Literally things would've been better if our main characters just drowned, because they're so stupid that being alive is a hindrance to the entire world. It all works out in the end, of course, because this book is contrived bullshit, but you get the point. They had a specific goal and would have been more successful as corpses.
A human steward of The Winter King (the character that actually tries ripping the pages) winds up on the sinking ship with our protagonists and the depth of his past treacheries is revealed pretty much right after they're all rescued. They loathe him, distrust him, and debate killing him in cold blood (which is a messed up thing to imagine Tolkien and Lewis debating) and yet instead of doing that, they take him along on their adventure for...some reason that is not explained, and let him walk around freely and unobserved. It backfires immediately (duh) and he runs off with the two magical items they were supposed to protect.
Uhhhh, hey guys? You realize there's a grey area between murdering people you distrust like a freaking psycho killer and letting them just do whatevs, right? Tie the dude up, or have someone watch him at all times, or leave him behind and don't take him along on your super important mission in the first place. How hard is that? I swear, between The Winter King and our "heroes" this book is like watching two village idiots engage in a battle of wits. You just want it to end so the cringe-inducing second-hand embarrassment will go away.
Okay, let's not get too bogged down in specific examples here or I'll be at it all day. You get the idea. It's far too idiotic, poorly written, and generic for adults to enjoy, even adults (like myself) that regularly enjoy books written for children.
Children?
On the other hand, is it even enjoyable for kids? I didn't even know who Charles Williams was, so I know for sure kids don't have a clue. Why is his name some big reveal? Kids won't give a crap. And while I'll easily accept that a kid could be familiar with C.S. Lewis or Tolkien, would they know H.G. Wells or Jules Verne? Do they know what Avalon is? Are they going to be familiar enough with Jason and the Argonauts to recognize the reference to Argo? Do they know who the hell Nemo is, or is the adorable clown fish the only Nemo they know?
Maybe a kid wouldn't notice how utter crap this book is because kids don't know shit and have atrocious taste in entertainment, but the vast majority of the references would be lost on them. And the story often grinds to a halt for the sake of those references, or relies on those references to add context to what's happening or what's being said. The big reveal of The Winter King's true identity is Mordred, for instance, which no kid is going to get. The references seem to be the entire point of the book, and there's really not a ton of action or excitement, so you have to wonder if it would even hold their attention.
This really shouldn't have any audience whatsoever because it seems to please no one, and yet a decent number of people seem to love it anyway. Unabashed, five-star love! From adults! Madness! I won't even begin to try and understand what anyone sees in this masturbatory, self-congratulatory, fan-fic garbage. It's too confusing and I lose faith in the human race with every second that I spend thinking about it. Best just to move on and try to forget. This is the dictionary definition of a one-star book, and that's what it gets from me.
Characters
The characters have exactly zero personality until the author needs to manufacture drama, and then they get angry with each other for absolutely no reason. Jack (C.S. Lewis) in particular is portrayed as a callous jerk, but only sometimes, when it's convenient and the author needs to add some tension to a boring scene. At the start of the book he really tears into John (Tolkien) for things that are clearly not his fault, and continues to take shots at him throughout the book when you're least expecting it and never for any legitimate reason. What the hell? Why? It's the most contrived crap I've ever read, and totally unnecessary. Like I said, it's manufactured drama. It's fake. It's false. Is this a novel or reality television?
Having fictionalized versions of beloved authors that are kind of bland is something I can totally understand. If your prose, world-building, plot, and secondary characters are all fantastic then you can easily get away with bland protagonists, and they're real people, so maybe you don't want to portray them as anything other than stereotypical upstanding Englishmen just to avoid controversy and to be respectful to their memory. But then why turn them into annoying drama queens at the drop of a hat?
It very much seems like the author tried the first method, realized his characters were completely two-dimensional and every other aspect of the book was so terrible that it didn't make up the difference, so he added a bunch of random "flavor" to them in the second draft that straight up doesn't make any sense and comes out of nowhere. Such poor character writing I have scarcely seen in my entire life. If you're a writer yourself this book is almost worth reading just as a crystal clear example of what not to do.
Plot
The plot is just generic magical nonsense. To give you an idea of how much the story cares for logical consistency, the seat of power in the Archipelago of Dreams originally became such not through military might, but because they grow fantastic apples and people really love good produce. As if someone with military might wouldn't just take over your land and your apples... It's said as an off-hand joke, sure, but it's representative of how much the book as a whole cares about having any kind of logical consistency, which is to say it doesn't care at all.
Some more extreme examples of complete logical failings:
The Winter King, the clever and powerful antagonist we're supposed to fear, steals a leather-wrapped book from our protagonists and then immediately sails away and sinks their ship without unwrapping the book to make sure it's the right one, which of course it isn't. I check my bag at McDonald's to make sure they got my order right before leaving and you can't even check to make sure your enemy didn't sneakily hand you the wrong book before sinking their ship and leaving them to drown?! The Winter King clearly has an intellectual disability and needs a legal guardian to look after him, because nobody who's that stupid is capable of looking after themselves. This book is secretly a post-modern meta-commentary about the mental health-care system (I wish).
And this happens right after one of the characters mentions that he purposefully didn't sink their ship when disabling it with cannon-fire because he really needs the book and can't have it sinking to the bottom of the ocean and getting lost forever, which it absolutely would have if the protagonists hadn't been rescued from drowning by a deus ex machina. Speaking of deus ex machinas, they seem to be the main way of moving the plot forward in this book, so get used to that.
The Winter King isn't the only dolt though. Our characters are deliberately trying to destroy the aforementioned book at this point, sailing to the original creator of the book so he can tell them how to destroy it when The Winter King boards their ship. But get this, they can't destroy it because it doesn't burn. Okay, but then why do they take great pains to keep it from getting wet? Have you tried getting it wet? Have you tried ripping the pages into a million pieces and scattering them to the winds? No, of course they haven't. That would make too much sense. The only character that does try to rip it is one of the bad guys, towards the very end of the book. It doesn't work of course, but the fact that it wasn't even tried is ridiculous. Lazy, lazy author.
And if it can't be destroyed, why do they not think to throw it in the damn ocean which, as they just pointed out, would keep it out of The Winter King's hands? Literally things would've been better if our main characters just drowned, because they're so stupid that being alive is a hindrance to the entire world. It all works out in the end, of course, because this book is contrived bullshit, but you get the point. They had a specific goal and would have been more successful as corpses.
A human steward of The Winter King (the character that actually tries ripping the pages) winds up on the sinking ship with our protagonists and the depth of his past treacheries is revealed pretty much right after they're all rescued. They loathe him, distrust him, and debate killing him in cold blood (which is a messed up thing to imagine Tolkien and Lewis debating) and yet instead of doing that, they take him along on their adventure for...some reason that is not explained, and let him walk around freely and unobserved. It backfires immediately (duh) and he runs off with the two magical items they were supposed to protect.
Uhhhh, hey guys? You realize there's a grey area between murdering people you distrust like a freaking psycho killer and letting them just do whatevs, right? Tie the dude up, or have someone watch him at all times, or leave him behind and don't take him along on your super important mission in the first place. How hard is that? I swear, between The Winter King and our "heroes" this book is like watching two village idiots engage in a battle of wits. You just want it to end so the cringe-inducing second-hand embarrassment will go away.
Okay, let's not get too bogged down in specific examples here or I'll be at it all day. You get the idea. It's far too idiotic, poorly written, and generic for adults to enjoy, even adults (like myself) that regularly enjoy books written for children.
Children?
On the other hand, is it even enjoyable for kids? I didn't even know who Charles Williams was, so I know for sure kids don't have a clue. Why is his name some big reveal? Kids won't give a crap. And while I'll easily accept that a kid could be familiar with C.S. Lewis or Tolkien, would they know H.G. Wells or Jules Verne? Do they know what Avalon is? Are they going to be familiar enough with Jason and the Argonauts to recognize the reference to Argo? Do they know who the hell Nemo is, or is the adorable clown fish the only Nemo they know?
Maybe a kid wouldn't notice how utter crap this book is because kids don't know shit and have atrocious taste in entertainment, but the vast majority of the references would be lost on them. And the story often grinds to a halt for the sake of those references, or relies on those references to add context to what's happening or what's being said. The big reveal of The Winter King's true identity is Mordred, for instance, which no kid is going to get. The references seem to be the entire point of the book, and there's really not a ton of action or excitement, so you have to wonder if it would even hold their attention.
This really shouldn't have any audience whatsoever because it seems to please no one, and yet a decent number of people seem to love it anyway. Unabashed, five-star love! From adults! Madness! I won't even begin to try and understand what anyone sees in this masturbatory, self-congratulatory, fan-fic garbage. It's too confusing and I lose faith in the human race with every second that I spend thinking about it. Best just to move on and try to forget. This is the dictionary definition of a one-star book, and that's what it gets from me.
July 3, 2019
A fun listen.
This is the first fantasy in English that I listened to without having a physical copy to help me through the listening, and I guess this was a trial to see how well it went. While the narration was indeed good and the story fun and entertaining, my issues to stay focused made themselves very clear. I'm sure I missed lots of stuff from zoning out, but at least I wasn't bored and I enjoyed the historical and literal references and characters/people.
This is the first fantasy in English that I listened to without having a physical copy to help me through the listening, and I guess this was a trial to see how well it went. While the narration was indeed good and the story fun and entertaining, my issues to stay focused made themselves very clear. I'm sure I missed lots of stuff from zoning out, but at least I wasn't bored and I enjoyed the historical and literal references and characters/people.
May 4, 2018
3.75
Let me explain this book for you. No, there is too much—let me sum up: Three young Oxford chaps who have never met before, John, Jack, and Charles, are brought together on a dark and stormy night by the death of Professor Sigurdsson—the Caretaker of the Imaginarium Geographica, the atlas of every mythological and legendary land. Then a mysterious man of diminutive stature and looking something like "what might result if you shredded an illustrated edition of the works of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, then pasted the pieces back together in random order" (who just happens to be H.G. Wells from the future) knocks on their door (which just happens to be 221B Baker Street) and tells them that, apparently, they're the new Caretakers. They then get chased through the streets of London by a nasty bunch of Wendigo, sail on a magic ship to the Archipelago of Dreams, and then they have to defeat a nasty old bottom feeder called the Winter King. There are also dragons who drink tea, badgers who build cars and bake muffins for the sole purpose of throwing at people's heads, the origins of the Loch Ness monster, and other lovelies like that. Oh! Have I mentioned yet that John, Jack, and Charles are actually J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams? No? Well, I have now.
It's a fantastic concept and plot, and I was jumping up and down over it. However, had the plot been any less amazing, I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to overlook this book's faults so easily.
Because really, it's riddled with faults that in most books would have done it in for me.
I tend to prioritize quality of characters over anything else in a book (the characters should be the heart and soul of any book, and really good ones can save a book that lacks in virtually all other areas) and sadly, the characters in this book fall quite flat. They're underdeveloped, entirely unmemorable, and quite frankly a bit annoying at times.
There are some things aren't explained very well. Jack's shadow—or lack thereof—for instance. I'm not sure I ever understood why that happened. Also, some of the things the characters did seemed without rhyme or reason.
And the writing, while witty and humourous, could have been better.
Overall, a less than brilliant execution of a brilliant idea.
And yet Here, There Be Dragons has a whimsical lure and irresistible pull—not unlike that feeling you (or I, at any rate) get from thoughts of moss and vine-covered stone walls with hidden gates, old maps, swords in stones, fire-breathing dragons, hidden moonpaths, the wood in between the worlds that you visited with Polly Plummer and Digory Kirk once upon a time. That tingle you get from the untold secrets of a fairytale and the adventures yet to be had by heroes yet to be made. The sort of thing we played at as children.
It is, ultimately, a bit childish, and that is its redeeming quality.
Despite all it's failings, it found its way into my heart and managed to get a 4-star (well, almost) rating from me.
Let me explain this book for you. No, there is too much—let me sum up: Three young Oxford chaps who have never met before, John, Jack, and Charles, are brought together on a dark and stormy night by the death of Professor Sigurdsson—the Caretaker of the Imaginarium Geographica, the atlas of every mythological and legendary land. Then a mysterious man of diminutive stature and looking something like "what might result if you shredded an illustrated edition of the works of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, then pasted the pieces back together in random order" (who just happens to be H.G. Wells from the future) knocks on their door (which just happens to be 221B Baker Street) and tells them that, apparently, they're the new Caretakers. They then get chased through the streets of London by a nasty bunch of Wendigo, sail on a magic ship to the Archipelago of Dreams, and then they have to defeat a nasty old bottom feeder called the Winter King. There are also dragons who drink tea, badgers who build cars and bake muffins for the sole purpose of throwing at people's heads, the origins of the Loch Ness monster, and other lovelies like that. Oh! Have I mentioned yet that John, Jack, and Charles are actually J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams? No? Well, I have now.
It's a fantastic concept and plot, and I was jumping up and down over it. However, had the plot been any less amazing, I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to overlook this book's faults so easily.
Because really, it's riddled with faults that in most books would have done it in for me.
I tend to prioritize quality of characters over anything else in a book (the characters should be the heart and soul of any book, and really good ones can save a book that lacks in virtually all other areas) and sadly, the characters in this book fall quite flat. They're underdeveloped, entirely unmemorable, and quite frankly a bit annoying at times.
There are some things aren't explained very well. Jack's shadow—or lack thereof—for instance. I'm not sure I ever understood why that happened. Also, some of the things the characters did seemed without rhyme or reason.
And the writing, while witty and humourous, could have been better.
Overall, a less than brilliant execution of a brilliant idea.
And yet Here, There Be Dragons has a whimsical lure and irresistible pull—not unlike that feeling you (or I, at any rate) get from thoughts of moss and vine-covered stone walls with hidden gates, old maps, swords in stones, fire-breathing dragons, hidden moonpaths, the wood in between the worlds that you visited with Polly Plummer and Digory Kirk once upon a time. That tingle you get from the untold secrets of a fairytale and the adventures yet to be had by heroes yet to be made. The sort of thing we played at as children.
It is, ultimately, a bit childish, and that is its redeeming quality.
Despite all it's failings, it found its way into my heart and managed to get a 4-star (well, almost) rating from me.
February 7, 2024
4 1/2 Stars-5 for the Ending
James A. Owen's took me on a ferris wheel of supposition-a ride filled with a bibliophiles dream world, from ancient Greece, to Avalon and all the places in between.
Suppose the worlds of make-believe had a basis in reality. Suppose, that we could, in the right circumstances, visit them. And suppose the proof of their substance was strewn throughout both history and fiction...
The story begins with 3 strangers who meet and without warning become companions on a journey to save an archipelago, a parallel world. As the story knits together the reader in you will start to piece things together and you may think "hey isn't that________! Or you may pass right over a place or person and not even think about it, until you reach the ending. Oh, the ending of this book-it had me shout "What?" It had me think more deeply about some of the things and people I encountered in this book.
There are 7 more books in this series and I can hardly wait to get back on the ride. If you can suspend reality and just have fun with it, I highly recommend this book
James A. Owen's took me on a ferris wheel of supposition-a ride filled with a bibliophiles dream world, from ancient Greece, to Avalon and all the places in between.
Suppose the worlds of make-believe had a basis in reality. Suppose, that we could, in the right circumstances, visit them. And suppose the proof of their substance was strewn throughout both history and fiction...
The story begins with 3 strangers who meet and without warning become companions on a journey to save an archipelago, a parallel world. As the story knits together the reader in you will start to piece things together and you may think "hey isn't that________! Or you may pass right over a place or person and not even think about it, until you reach the ending. Oh, the ending of this book-it had me shout "What?" It had me think more deeply about some of the things and people I encountered in this book.
There are 7 more books in this series and I can hardly wait to get back on the ride. If you can suspend reality and just have fun with it, I highly recommend this book
July 16, 2016
Ide u kategoriju onih lijepih koje grlis! Uzivala sam u knjizevbim referencama, neke prepoznala po putu, a neki me podsjetili na one koje obozavam i bila sam u pravu:))) Na momente zasuzih (ne zato jer je jako tuzno, nego sam emocionalno rastrojena pa jecam na lijepo)... Zmajici, brodovi, magija i sve poznate fantasticne lokacije na jednom mjestu <3 Malo predvidiva sto ne umanjuje njenu ljepotu! I ima hrpu prekrasnih recenica i nasjladeg lika ikad, gospodina jazavca Tummelera i njegove muffine od borovnica koje pobjeduju Zlo :))))
dnf
February 18, 2023I thought the beginning was a really neat idea but it just became too cliche. After reading some reviews I decided it wasn’t worth pushing through.
May 13, 2019
This book was good.
God damn was this book good.
Do you like The Chronicles of Narnia? Do you like The Lord of the Rings? Do you like fantasy? Do you like classic literature? Do you like stories featuring good and evil?
Then you will love this book.
A friend of mine told me that she read these and was re-reading them again. I told her that I had never heard of them and she begged me to go out and grab a copy. Wouldn't you know that Barnes and Noble didn't carry it so I specially ordered it. It came and I put it off to the side. However, I told her that I started reading it today... and, well, I finished it. It was so good I couldn't put it down.
I thought I had everything figured out about this book. I thought I knew where it was going and that I was racing to find out if my suspicions were true.... only to find out that they were and weren't at the same time.
By the end of this book, I decided that this is a book crafted with love and a nod to some of the greatest writers and worlds of our time. I could only wonder how the other books would go and what adventures would befall people that I thought I knew but didn't quite know as well as I thought I did. ;)
God damn was this book good.
Do you like The Chronicles of Narnia? Do you like The Lord of the Rings? Do you like fantasy? Do you like classic literature? Do you like stories featuring good and evil?
Then you will love this book.
A friend of mine told me that she read these and was re-reading them again. I told her that I had never heard of them and she begged me to go out and grab a copy. Wouldn't you know that Barnes and Noble didn't carry it so I specially ordered it. It came and I put it off to the side. However, I told her that I started reading it today... and, well, I finished it. It was so good I couldn't put it down.
I thought I had everything figured out about this book. I thought I knew where it was going and that I was racing to find out if my suspicions were true.... only to find out that they were and weren't at the same time.
By the end of this book, I decided that this is a book crafted with love and a nod to some of the greatest writers and worlds of our time. I could only wonder how the other books would go and what adventures would befall people that I thought I knew but didn't quite know as well as I thought I did. ;)
January 21, 2024
“I am almost inclined to set it up as a canon that a children’s story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children’s story.” - C.S. Lewis
December 21, 2008
Three Oxford men find themselves visiting a murdered professor in 1917 London. There, a strange little man compels them to run from the beasts what did the murder. they board a dragonship and sail to the waters where everything that exists in fable , myth, and legend has a real counterpart. They three must guard a book of maps and language that could be put to foul use by the Winter King.
I like fantasy books that base themselves on folklore and hint or flat out say (in this case) that folklore comes from truths. So, good set-up and it has some good action sequences, but, overall, the book is a little flat. The language is direct and simple (as befits a kids book and not a teen book given the kind that are published these days) and it unexcitedly moves from one scene to another as the plot floats along the lazy river of time. There are a couple literary-linked twists at the end, but these aren't truly that spectacular. I also detect a hint of the christian persuasion lurking behind the story, but it is certainly not propaganda and not super overt.
Anyway, like watching a couple of hours of TV.
I like fantasy books that base themselves on folklore and hint or flat out say (in this case) that folklore comes from truths. So, good set-up and it has some good action sequences, but, overall, the book is a little flat. The language is direct and simple (as befits a kids book and not a teen book given the kind that are published these days) and it unexcitedly moves from one scene to another as the plot floats along the lazy river of time. There are a couple literary-linked twists at the end, but these aren't truly that spectacular. I also detect a hint of the christian persuasion lurking behind the story, but it is certainly not propaganda and not super overt.
Anyway, like watching a couple of hours of TV.
March 26, 2009
Well I wasnt expecting to give this a 5 star rating when I was 1\3 or even 1\2 way through the book. I was thinking maybe a 4ish..
It does start out a little hard to feel engaged.
The characters are also a little hard to connect with.
But by the end I was very fascinated with the characters\plot\history\mythology and how the writer has built and intertwined all these elements into one world. how this one place could be the whole base of not only our various gods and mythical ledgends but the very place that some best loved Authors drew their inspiration.
I spent the last half of this book with one hand holding the book and the other searching Wikipedia!
A great surprise- offf to find the next book at my library!
It does start out a little hard to feel engaged.
The characters are also a little hard to connect with.
But by the end I was very fascinated with the characters\plot\history\mythology and how the writer has built and intertwined all these elements into one world. how this one place could be the whole base of not only our various gods and mythical ledgends but the very place that some best loved Authors drew their inspiration.
I spent the last half of this book with one hand holding the book and the other searching Wikipedia!
A great surprise- offf to find the next book at my library!
August 28, 2017
I loved how this book began.....a murder, a mystery, strange creatures and a magical journey.
I was all set for a great read....but then....I became really disconcerted to discover that the story reminded me of two other very famous books!
Surely, I thought, no author would be that obvious.....then the penny began to drop, and what unfolded was a very clever and original story peopled by some memorable characters......and Dragons!
I knew there was something special going on, but the ending was still a revelation which I thought was a brilliant twist.
I'm really happy to have discovered this book.
I was all set for a great read....but then....I became really disconcerted to discover that the story reminded me of two other very famous books!
Surely, I thought, no author would be that obvious.....then the penny began to drop, and what unfolded was a very clever and original story peopled by some memorable characters......and Dragons!
I knew there was something special going on, but the ending was still a revelation which I thought was a brilliant twist.
I'm really happy to have discovered this book.
January 2, 2019
I felt like this book had real potential, but didn't quite get there. I loved the rich literary world built on other characters and fantasy worlds. It was such a unique idea. I also really liked the art and was impressed to find out the author did it. It added to the feel of the story a lot. I found myself looking up characters and historical people I couldn't quite remember. I walked into the book already knowing the 'twist ending' so that wasn't a surprise to me. But I did like the twist!
I found a lot that felt lacking. First of all, the characters were not that great. At first I couldn't even tell the main 3 apart. Then I quickly thought of Jack as the annoying one, John the insecure one and Charles the 'blah' one. And don't even get me started on Aven, the only female (who in my head I kept calling Arwen). She was so annoying the type of female character I most dislike-trying overly hard to be tough and masculine and prove herself as a tough girl with snarky comments and constant eye rolling. I wanted to smack her. And all the guys were ogling over her the whole time! The character I most liked was a lovable badger! I also didn't like how plot and dialogue driven it was. I get that the target audience is probably middle school boys, but I find it hard to get into or envision a fantasy world when it isn't really described. I also felt like things happened so quickly I would miss something and have to re-read to not miss a crucial plot point. I would've liked more description. I feel like this was just made to be turned into a movie or show or something. It wasn't a rich fantasy world to enter into.
I don't know if I will keep reading the series, it has potential, but I don't want to waste my time if it doesn't improve.
I found a lot that felt lacking. First of all, the characters were not that great. At first I couldn't even tell the main 3 apart. Then I quickly thought of Jack as the annoying one, John the insecure one and Charles the 'blah' one. And don't even get me started on Aven, the only female (who in my head I kept calling Arwen). She was so annoying the type of female character I most dislike-trying overly hard to be tough and masculine and prove herself as a tough girl with snarky comments and constant eye rolling. I wanted to smack her. And all the guys were ogling over her the whole time! The character I most liked was a lovable badger! I also didn't like how plot and dialogue driven it was. I get that the target audience is probably middle school boys, but I find it hard to get into or envision a fantasy world when it isn't really described. I also felt like things happened so quickly I would miss something and have to re-read to not miss a crucial plot point. I would've liked more description. I feel like this was just made to be turned into a movie or show or something. It wasn't a rich fantasy world to enter into.
I don't know if I will keep reading the series, it has potential, but I don't want to waste my time if it doesn't improve.
December 29, 2018
I read this about ten years ago and remember enjoying it, but especially the ending. I reread it now, and knowing the big "reveal" made the experience a little more tedious, but I'm still going to continue the series. It's a little confusing for me who the target audience is. On the one hand, I thought it was maybe a middle grade book, with literary references tucked in as nods to adult readers. But then, some of the references are like that-just fun little Easter eggs--and others are really important to the plot. I'm not sure. It's a fun adventure book with aspirations to be greater, but doesn't quite get there, despite the name dropping it does.
April 16, 2025
3.5 stars.
As a children's book, it does pretty well. The plot was good. I found that the writing was too fast paced for me to actually get attached to the characters. He tried to make parts of it emotional, but we never got to that depth in the story. It's hard to describe. Overall, I enjoyed the story.
As a children's book, it does pretty well. The plot was good. I found that the writing was too fast paced for me to actually get attached to the characters. He tried to make parts of it emotional, but we never got to that depth in the story. It's hard to describe. Overall, I enjoyed the story.
September 30, 2010
"Wendigo!”
” Pasukan pemburu dari musuh kita,” dengus Bert
”.... untuk menjadi Wendigo sejati, daging yang pertama mereka makan
harus berasal dari tubuh sahabat atau orang yang mereka
cintai....”
”Wendigo gemar memakan korban mereka hidup-hidup."
Tiga orang pria dipersatukan oleh nasib. John, Charles dan Jack, dengan cara yang unik, masing-masing memiliki koneksi dengan Professor Sigurdsson yang belum lama ditemukan meninggal. Saat sedang sibuk mendiskusikan sebab musabab meninggalkan sang profesor, seorang pria misterius berpostur kecil menerbos masuk dan mencerocos tiada henti sambil menyerahkan kain minyak ke Jhon. Ternyata di dalamnya terdapat Imaginarium Geographica.
Imaginarium Geographica adalah seluruh dunia dalam tinta dan darah, kertas kulit dan perkamen plus sampul yang mahal. Gunanya sudah jelas, memadu seseorang dari satu tempat ke tempat lainnya di sebuah dunia imajiner. Buku itu akan membawa siapa saja ke tempat negeri-negeri yang ada di dalam mitos, legenda, fabel dan dongeng, dikenal dengan nama Kepulauan Mimpi. Profesor dibunuh akibat memiliki buku itu! Siapa bilang buku tidak bisa menimbulkan bahaya?
Jhon yang merupakan murid tunggal sang profesor dianggap sebagai juru kunci utama buku. Ia dianggap cakap menterjemahkan lokasi-lokasi dari Kepulauan Mimpi yang bakalan mereka sambangi.Dengan menaiki sebuah kapal. Sebenarnya Dragon ship yang diberi nama Indigo Dragon. Awak Indigo Dragon adalah faun, makhluk bertubuh setengah manusia setengah kambing. Mereka bertiga ditambah dengan Bert si lelaki misterius itu, serta Aven sang kapten kapal mereka harus mendatangi Kepulauan Mimpi guna menciptakan perdamaian. Mereka melewati perbatasan antara dunia yang selama ini mereka kenal menuju negeri antah berantah.
Seperti kisah fantasi lainnya, tentu ada yang bertugas berperan menjadi Tokoh Jahat” Untuk kali ini yang menjadi tokoh jahat adalah Raja Musim Dingin. Sosok Raja Musim Dingin sungguh luar biasa! Selain tidak memiliki bayangan, ia juga tidak memiliki tangan kanan. Sebagai ganti, ia menggunakan sebuah kait baja berujung tajam melengkung. Mmengingatkan pada seseorang....? Ia juga menciptakan berbagai pasukan bayangan yang siap memuluskan jalannya menjadi penguasa nomor satu. Satu-satunya yang menghalangi jalannya menjadi raja adalah pemegang cincin kekuasaan. Sebagai keturunan Arthur juga, maka ia berusaha keras menjadi satu-satunya keturunan Arthur yang tersisa serta mencari dimana cincin itu berada.
Seperti biasa, tugas ketiga pria itu adalah mengembalikan kedamaian dan ketentaram di muka bumi. Tentunya perjuangan mereka tidaklah mudah. Selain harus berurusan dengan aneka makhluk yang selama ini dianggap tidak ada, perjalanan yang ditempuh juga cukup berat. Mulai dari adanya penyusup di kapal, bertempuran dengan Black Dragon, perjumpaan dengan Samantha si makhluk tertua yang pernah hidup. Hingga membantu Jhon membaca dan memahami Imaginarium Geographica
Ada sebuah bagian yang menarik. Saat harus membuka sebuah pintu ajaib, disebutkan bahwa pintu itu hanya bisa dibuka dengan mantera yang menggunakan bahasa peri. Konon mantera itu di diciptakan oleh Eladin. Charles langsung teringat pada Aladin yang menyebutkan Alakazam.... pintu langsung terbuka! Ada gunanya juga mengetahui cerita klasik ya.
Lalu sebuah cerita yang mengetengahkan nama sendri seseorang. Jika kita bisa mengetahui nama asli seseorang, nama yang menunjukkan jati diri sebenarnya, maka orang itu atau sesuatu akan tunduk . Masalahnya hanya sedikit orang yang ingat siapa nama mereka sebenarnya, dan untungnya lebih sedikit lagi yang tahu nama orang lain.. mengingatkan pada sebuah buku khan...
Seluruh kisah dalam buku ini memang menarik. Plus kejutan-kejutan yang bukan kecil! Tebakan saya mengenai suatu hal sering salah. Penulis juga memasukan misteri dunia sebagai bahan memperindah jalan cerita. Misalnya membuat kemunculan monster laut di skotlandia yang menggemparkan itu akibat perbuatan mereka. Buku ini juga menunjukkan bahwa beberapa buku fantasi memiliki pengaruh terhadap buku yang lain. Suatu tokoh yang melegenda, sering digunakan sebagai panutan, di buku yang lain sering ditemukan modifikasinya.
Cerita yang menarik serta ilustrasi yang indah membuat siapapun akan terbuai, terseret dalam petualangan mereka.
Eh.... ada kejutan diakhir cerita ! Ternyata beberapa orang juru kunci adalah orang terkenal!
Lalu ketiga juru kunci itu ternyata adalah....................
Ah baca sendiri aja ya....
” Pasukan pemburu dari musuh kita,” dengus Bert
”.... untuk menjadi Wendigo sejati, daging yang pertama mereka makan
harus berasal dari tubuh sahabat atau orang yang mereka
cintai....”
”Wendigo gemar memakan korban mereka hidup-hidup."
Tiga orang pria dipersatukan oleh nasib. John, Charles dan Jack, dengan cara yang unik, masing-masing memiliki koneksi dengan Professor Sigurdsson yang belum lama ditemukan meninggal. Saat sedang sibuk mendiskusikan sebab musabab meninggalkan sang profesor, seorang pria misterius berpostur kecil menerbos masuk dan mencerocos tiada henti sambil menyerahkan kain minyak ke Jhon. Ternyata di dalamnya terdapat Imaginarium Geographica.
Imaginarium Geographica adalah seluruh dunia dalam tinta dan darah, kertas kulit dan perkamen plus sampul yang mahal. Gunanya sudah jelas, memadu seseorang dari satu tempat ke tempat lainnya di sebuah dunia imajiner. Buku itu akan membawa siapa saja ke tempat negeri-negeri yang ada di dalam mitos, legenda, fabel dan dongeng, dikenal dengan nama Kepulauan Mimpi. Profesor dibunuh akibat memiliki buku itu! Siapa bilang buku tidak bisa menimbulkan bahaya?
Jhon yang merupakan murid tunggal sang profesor dianggap sebagai juru kunci utama buku. Ia dianggap cakap menterjemahkan lokasi-lokasi dari Kepulauan Mimpi yang bakalan mereka sambangi.Dengan menaiki sebuah kapal. Sebenarnya Dragon ship yang diberi nama Indigo Dragon. Awak Indigo Dragon adalah faun, makhluk bertubuh setengah manusia setengah kambing. Mereka bertiga ditambah dengan Bert si lelaki misterius itu, serta Aven sang kapten kapal mereka harus mendatangi Kepulauan Mimpi guna menciptakan perdamaian. Mereka melewati perbatasan antara dunia yang selama ini mereka kenal menuju negeri antah berantah.
Seperti kisah fantasi lainnya, tentu ada yang bertugas berperan menjadi Tokoh Jahat” Untuk kali ini yang menjadi tokoh jahat adalah Raja Musim Dingin. Sosok Raja Musim Dingin sungguh luar biasa! Selain tidak memiliki bayangan, ia juga tidak memiliki tangan kanan. Sebagai ganti, ia menggunakan sebuah kait baja berujung tajam melengkung. Mmengingatkan pada seseorang....? Ia juga menciptakan berbagai pasukan bayangan yang siap memuluskan jalannya menjadi penguasa nomor satu. Satu-satunya yang menghalangi jalannya menjadi raja adalah pemegang cincin kekuasaan. Sebagai keturunan Arthur juga, maka ia berusaha keras menjadi satu-satunya keturunan Arthur yang tersisa serta mencari dimana cincin itu berada.
Seperti biasa, tugas ketiga pria itu adalah mengembalikan kedamaian dan ketentaram di muka bumi. Tentunya perjuangan mereka tidaklah mudah. Selain harus berurusan dengan aneka makhluk yang selama ini dianggap tidak ada, perjalanan yang ditempuh juga cukup berat. Mulai dari adanya penyusup di kapal, bertempuran dengan Black Dragon, perjumpaan dengan Samantha si makhluk tertua yang pernah hidup. Hingga membantu Jhon membaca dan memahami Imaginarium Geographica
Ada sebuah bagian yang menarik. Saat harus membuka sebuah pintu ajaib, disebutkan bahwa pintu itu hanya bisa dibuka dengan mantera yang menggunakan bahasa peri. Konon mantera itu di diciptakan oleh Eladin. Charles langsung teringat pada Aladin yang menyebutkan Alakazam.... pintu langsung terbuka! Ada gunanya juga mengetahui cerita klasik ya.
Lalu sebuah cerita yang mengetengahkan nama sendri seseorang. Jika kita bisa mengetahui nama asli seseorang, nama yang menunjukkan jati diri sebenarnya, maka orang itu atau sesuatu akan tunduk . Masalahnya hanya sedikit orang yang ingat siapa nama mereka sebenarnya, dan untungnya lebih sedikit lagi yang tahu nama orang lain.. mengingatkan pada sebuah buku khan...
Seluruh kisah dalam buku ini memang menarik. Plus kejutan-kejutan yang bukan kecil! Tebakan saya mengenai suatu hal sering salah. Penulis juga memasukan misteri dunia sebagai bahan memperindah jalan cerita. Misalnya membuat kemunculan monster laut di skotlandia yang menggemparkan itu akibat perbuatan mereka. Buku ini juga menunjukkan bahwa beberapa buku fantasi memiliki pengaruh terhadap buku yang lain. Suatu tokoh yang melegenda, sering digunakan sebagai panutan, di buku yang lain sering ditemukan modifikasinya.
Cerita yang menarik serta ilustrasi yang indah membuat siapapun akan terbuai, terseret dalam petualangan mereka.
Eh.... ada kejutan diakhir cerita ! Ternyata beberapa orang juru kunci adalah orang terkenal!
Lalu ketiga juru kunci itu ternyata adalah....................
Ah baca sendiri aja ya....
May 26, 2021
Slow clap, Master James A. Owen.
Slow clap indeed.
Okay kidding, I have a real review.
The expression on my face right now is complete and utter pure shock.
Pack up and get out of town.
This book was tottering on the line between 3 and 4 stars until the twist at the end. All it took was a single sentence to shoot this book from a 3.5 to a 5 and a place on my "favorites" bookshelf. Now I know and everything makes sense. The connections, you guys. My mind is so blown I can't even function.
If you're a literature nerd, please--I'm literally begging you--read this book. The amount of literary references are ridiculous and so. fun. to pick out.
Yes, the narration could be seen as unexciting at parts (not many, in my opinion, the writing was fast paced and kept me engaged), the characters aren't the most developed on the planet (but they're so fun), and the female representation is frankly nonexistent (I got nothing for this, easily the biggest downside of this book). But if I'm able to look past all of that and appreciate the genius and mega-nerdness it took to write this book, then you can too.
Plus it made me laugh.
Plus plus the title is Here, There Be Dragons, which is epic.
Plus plus plus the adventure kicks off at 221B Baker Street. Try to beat that.
Just read this book. You'll like it.
Slow clap indeed.
Okay kidding, I have a real review.
The expression on my face right now is complete and utter pure shock.
Pack up and get out of town.
This book was tottering on the line between 3 and 4 stars until the twist at the end. All it took was a single sentence to shoot this book from a 3.5 to a 5 and a place on my "favorites" bookshelf. Now I know and everything makes sense. The connections, you guys. My mind is so blown I can't even function.
If you're a literature nerd, please--I'm literally begging you--read this book. The amount of literary references are ridiculous and so. fun. to pick out.
Yes, the narration could be seen as unexciting at parts (not many, in my opinion, the writing was fast paced and kept me engaged), the characters aren't the most developed on the planet (but they're so fun), and the female representation is frankly nonexistent (I got nothing for this, easily the biggest downside of this book). But if I'm able to look past all of that and appreciate the genius and mega-nerdness it took to write this book, then you can too.
Plus it made me laugh.
Plus plus the title is Here, There Be Dragons, which is epic.
Plus plus plus the adventure kicks off at 221B Baker Street. Try to beat that.
Just read this book. You'll like it.
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