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Alfred
Alfred is a normal video game playing boy who gets transported to a dark perilous land filled with werewolves, goblins, bandits, knights, peasants, and a vengeful witch. He must help the peasants rebuild their kingdom, unite the knights and bandits, and stop the impending attack by a powerful witch and her horde of goblins and ratlings.
- GenresFantasyMiddle Grade
290 pages, Paperback
First published November 2, 2006
29 people are currently reading
275 people want to read
About the author
Ron Smorynski
18 books11 followersRon Smorynski is an army brat, whose mom is Korean and his dad American-Polish. He grew up in White Sands Missile Range & Las Cruces, New Mexico. He transferred to UCLA as a fine artist, then in Los Angeles, as a struggling painter, discovered the new artform of CG animation. One of the first games and cinematics he experienced was Warcraft! He taught himself CG animation and got his first real job at Blizzard Entertainment working on cinematics for Diablo I.
Ron went on to work at various CG studios like Blur Studios. He worked as lead battle animator for the notoriously failed "Conan the Red Nails" animated feature. He always had a bug for indie work though. His animations and solo movie project can be seen on his youtube channel, Worldofgrim. His solo CG feature film got into the Hollywood Film Festival and was represented by two separate sales agents at the American Film Market in 2007 and 2008. After the mortgage crisis of 2008 his dreams of an indie cg producer got dashed against a proverbial rock. Though he continued on a 2nd feature, his daughters became his main focus. He ended up homeschooling them in their pre-teen to teen years. One even went on to win Rachel Ray's Kids Cook-Off on Foodnetwork. Ron had to sacrifice his 15 minutes of fame on that show! And he had to eat a lot of really really REALLY good food.
During all this, he always loved writing and has nearly a dozen unpublished novels and role playing game books. He even went as far as to publish Alfred, the Boy Who Would Be King, unedited, in 2006. Well in 2015, his sister by chance found the self-published book collecting dust and decided to read it. She saw how badly it was written! Yet she loved the story. So she tortured her younger brother for a couple of years of harrowing editing. Ron had finally succumbed to maturity, professionalism and EDITING. Not only did she use her spare time to edit, after it was all done and polished, and loving it so, she decided to hire an editor on her own dime to help Ron really get it right. Ron has now committed himself to the project and the professionalism needed to make a great story.
Ron went on to work at various CG studios like Blur Studios. He worked as lead battle animator for the notoriously failed "Conan the Red Nails" animated feature. He always had a bug for indie work though. His animations and solo movie project can be seen on his youtube channel, Worldofgrim. His solo CG feature film got into the Hollywood Film Festival and was represented by two separate sales agents at the American Film Market in 2007 and 2008. After the mortgage crisis of 2008 his dreams of an indie cg producer got dashed against a proverbial rock. Though he continued on a 2nd feature, his daughters became his main focus. He ended up homeschooling them in their pre-teen to teen years. One even went on to win Rachel Ray's Kids Cook-Off on Foodnetwork. Ron had to sacrifice his 15 minutes of fame on that show! And he had to eat a lot of really really REALLY good food.
During all this, he always loved writing and has nearly a dozen unpublished novels and role playing game books. He even went as far as to publish Alfred, the Boy Who Would Be King, unedited, in 2006. Well in 2015, his sister by chance found the self-published book collecting dust and decided to read it. She saw how badly it was written! Yet she loved the story. So she tortured her younger brother for a couple of years of harrowing editing. Ron had finally succumbed to maturity, professionalism and EDITING. Not only did she use her spare time to edit, after it was all done and polished, and loving it so, she decided to hire an editor on her own dime to help Ron really get it right. Ron has now committed himself to the project and the professionalism needed to make a great story.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 24, 2017
This was one of those books where you’re like “Oh.. okay.” but you don’t stop reading for like 50 pages and then it gets SO much better and you understand that everything that was slow at the beginning was needed for the set-up.
I am 17 but I still LOVE reading middle-grade. It’s one of my favorite genres and it makes me feel like a child again and this book definitely did that for me.
I love Alfred and his relationship with his mom. She’s really weird in the beginning, barely fits in her society and is really poor. Alfred appreciates their financial status although he is very young and I thought that was a really lovely aspect to the book.
It discussed a sensitive topic; money, in a way that a child would understand and comprehend so easily and so vividly.
You can check it out my full review right here for more detailed fangirling: https://lebookworm7.wordpress.com/201...
I am 17 but I still LOVE reading middle-grade. It’s one of my favorite genres and it makes me feel like a child again and this book definitely did that for me.
I love Alfred and his relationship with his mom. She’s really weird in the beginning, barely fits in her society and is really poor. Alfred appreciates their financial status although he is very young and I thought that was a really lovely aspect to the book.
It discussed a sensitive topic; money, in a way that a child would understand and comprehend so easily and so vividly.
You can check it out my full review right here for more detailed fangirling: https://lebookworm7.wordpress.com/201...
October 30, 2017
The book relates the story of Alfred –an ordinary eleven-year-old boy who loves playing video games on his second-hand computer. He’s so well aware of his mother’s sacrifice and the poverty he lives in that I can all but feel sympathy for him –even after his harsh words at his mother. I can well understand his frustration.
His mother, in a terrible fit, mentions the word ‘Bedenwulf’. When Alfred utters it, he accidentally summons an old wizard who has lost all his memories and they both enter another world. Together with the wizard Tirnalth and the cleric Verbogen, they set off to Grotham.
An avid reader of Medieval times, Alfred wants to improve the living conditions of this other world, with new farming techniques, using the fertile soil, for example, and encourage a better diet. This could’ve been boring, but the author manages to keep it interesting and make me smile at times:
“Wake up, my lord, my king! King Alfred!”
“I don't feel like a king! I'm just a kid,” Alfred yawned.
“You are not a goat! You are a boy whose line comes from glorious kings of old!” Abedeyan said, setting the bowl of hot water down.
Alfred struggles to integrate into the Grotham world (no hammering or tanning for the king) and soon teaches a few kids some defense techniques and archery. The pace quickens with the goblins’ attack. Unconventional knights soon appear, as well as otherworldly ‘bear-like creature with a huge beak and oversized claws’ and large, strong monkeys. Gorbogal the witch, sends out goblins in the final battle.
The strength of the book is about Alfred’s growth and what he learns about leadership. And he apologizes for it, showing his humility in the face of his mistakes.
I know what it is to be a king, to make mistakes like this and cost the lives of those around me. I'm sorry. I wish I would have known before. I wished I would have known what it meant to be king. But now I do, and I guess it's too late. I'm sorry I made such a mistake.
As a king, he learns to protect his people and leads them to battle (using his experience in video games and designing armor with spikes and nails similar to wrestlers from TV). The descriptions at the end of the book are vivid and gripping, the mist personifying Gorbogal terrifying. The twist at the end about his origin was unexpected.
There are a few snags along the way. A few typos (e.g. ‘abated breadth’) and a few jumps in the pov (e.g., we are in Alfred’s head throughout the book, and yet we see his mother ‘hoping to catch his eye to show her compassion). But it’s an excellent debut by the author and, with some polish and tweaks, this book can take off and attract middle-grade readers. The positives here well outweigh the negatives.
I received an e-copy of this book courtesy of KidLitExchange for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.
His mother, in a terrible fit, mentions the word ‘Bedenwulf’. When Alfred utters it, he accidentally summons an old wizard who has lost all his memories and they both enter another world. Together with the wizard Tirnalth and the cleric Verbogen, they set off to Grotham.
An avid reader of Medieval times, Alfred wants to improve the living conditions of this other world, with new farming techniques, using the fertile soil, for example, and encourage a better diet. This could’ve been boring, but the author manages to keep it interesting and make me smile at times:
“Wake up, my lord, my king! King Alfred!”
“I don't feel like a king! I'm just a kid,” Alfred yawned.
“You are not a goat! You are a boy whose line comes from glorious kings of old!” Abedeyan said, setting the bowl of hot water down.
Alfred struggles to integrate into the Grotham world (no hammering or tanning for the king) and soon teaches a few kids some defense techniques and archery. The pace quickens with the goblins’ attack. Unconventional knights soon appear, as well as otherworldly ‘bear-like creature with a huge beak and oversized claws’ and large, strong monkeys. Gorbogal the witch, sends out goblins in the final battle.
The strength of the book is about Alfred’s growth and what he learns about leadership. And he apologizes for it, showing his humility in the face of his mistakes.
I know what it is to be a king, to make mistakes like this and cost the lives of those around me. I'm sorry. I wish I would have known before. I wished I would have known what it meant to be king. But now I do, and I guess it's too late. I'm sorry I made such a mistake.
As a king, he learns to protect his people and leads them to battle (using his experience in video games and designing armor with spikes and nails similar to wrestlers from TV). The descriptions at the end of the book are vivid and gripping, the mist personifying Gorbogal terrifying. The twist at the end about his origin was unexpected.
There are a few snags along the way. A few typos (e.g. ‘abated breadth’) and a few jumps in the pov (e.g., we are in Alfred’s head throughout the book, and yet we see his mother ‘hoping to catch his eye to show her compassion). But it’s an excellent debut by the author and, with some polish and tweaks, this book can take off and attract middle-grade readers. The positives here well outweigh the negatives.
I received an e-copy of this book courtesy of KidLitExchange for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.
July 25, 2017
Alfred is a mostly ordinary boy, going to school, playing video games, and reading books about medieval history. His mother is a bit eccentric but all in all, he is living the normal life of an 11-year-old. That is until a mysterious man shows up one night and Alfred suddenly finds himself in a fantastical, medieval kingdom. What is even more strange, Alfred soon discovers he has families ties to this strange land and is the only heir left to the kingdom’s throne. Thrust in the middle of a kingdom cursed by a witch, a dark lord, terrible creatures, and famine, Alfred has his work cut out for him. But thanks to the help of a few new friends and his medieval video game and book knowledge he is up for the challenge.
Alfred is a determined, hopeful, excited kids living out a child’s fantasy. He manages to stay strong through horrible circumstances and uses his knowledge of the period along with that of his own time to try and make things better for his people. The mashing together of periods offers plenty of hilarious moments as Alfred tries to explain things like TV and pro-wrestlers. His knowledge of things like agriculture and battle defenses quickly become lifesavers for the peasants who have accepted the return of the king.
This fantastical adventure is a wonderful story that balances the dark, harsh realities of survival against both enemies and natural, the struggle of the weight thrust upon Alfred's shoulders, while also remaining lighthearted, funny, and fun. The story unfolds like a puzzle before the reader, much like it does for Alfred, as you discover more about his family, magic, and the politics of this magical world. Author Ron Smorynski has done an incredible job of creating a special world and characters that you can become invested it. The story captures the pure adventure and action so longed for in fantasy adventures while also tackling growing up, history, and family struggles. To me, it brings to mind such classics as Narnia and The Castle in the Attic.
The book is an excellent beginning. While the story itself is well rounded in itself the true magic is in the story that it has left to tell. Throughout the book, we get the beginnings of magical rules, political struggle, villains powers, and the complex history of Alfred’s family and those that knew them. The book leaves you with as many secrets as it answers and simply begs for a sequel. I am excited to see more from this author and continue my journey with Alfred and his friends, hopefully soon!
https://www.alfredtheboyking.com/ Here is a link to the website if you want to find out more!
Alfred is a determined, hopeful, excited kids living out a child’s fantasy. He manages to stay strong through horrible circumstances and uses his knowledge of the period along with that of his own time to try and make things better for his people. The mashing together of periods offers plenty of hilarious moments as Alfred tries to explain things like TV and pro-wrestlers. His knowledge of things like agriculture and battle defenses quickly become lifesavers for the peasants who have accepted the return of the king.
This fantastical adventure is a wonderful story that balances the dark, harsh realities of survival against both enemies and natural, the struggle of the weight thrust upon Alfred's shoulders, while also remaining lighthearted, funny, and fun. The story unfolds like a puzzle before the reader, much like it does for Alfred, as you discover more about his family, magic, and the politics of this magical world. Author Ron Smorynski has done an incredible job of creating a special world and characters that you can become invested it. The story captures the pure adventure and action so longed for in fantasy adventures while also tackling growing up, history, and family struggles. To me, it brings to mind such classics as Narnia and The Castle in the Attic.
The book is an excellent beginning. While the story itself is well rounded in itself the true magic is in the story that it has left to tell. Throughout the book, we get the beginnings of magical rules, political struggle, villains powers, and the complex history of Alfred’s family and those that knew them. The book leaves you with as many secrets as it answers and simply begs for a sequel. I am excited to see more from this author and continue my journey with Alfred and his friends, hopefully soon!
https://www.alfredtheboyking.com/ Here is a link to the website if you want to find out more!
Read
November 26, 2020I started reading this one last night but decided it wasn't for me. Granted it is written for a different target audience, and that's fine, but I couldn't get past the simplistic style and the repetitious dialogue about situations. Pity, I was on the look out for this book for the longest time after watching the movie, but I felt let down. And by the way, it seemed to be very different from the movie, what I read, anyway.
July 25, 2017
What happens when you knew that you were a King from another world? Well, this book happens! The story of this one revolves around an eleven year old boy whose name is Alfred and was the King from another world, he didn’t know until everything which most of his mom’s lies unravel. He found answers together with his written future and something about his deceased father.
This middle grade book is like a mixed of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson with a twist and a taste of Medieval. It was one of those fun and adventurous reads. Alfred had met a lot of different creatures that he needs to take care of for his country to survived. Good thing is that he was a fan of everything Medieval before he was transported into this whole new world. He was forced to rule his country despite his abilities and knowledge about the new world.
If I would describe this book in one word it would be Magical. Yes you read it right, Magical, this book is full of magic, wizards, different creatures like goblins, vile creatures, werewolves, rat-like-humans that is the main hindrance in Alfred’s way to rule peacefully. This book is not just for middle graders but both young adults and adults alike who would love this quick read.
Smorynski really knows how to capture the attention of his audience and made us read until the very last page of the book. Know how the story goes, how Alfred will beat these creatures to save his country and how he will rule this Medieval Kingdom by getting yourselves a copy. You will thank me afterwards, you’re welcome. 😉
This middle grade book is like a mixed of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson with a twist and a taste of Medieval. It was one of those fun and adventurous reads. Alfred had met a lot of different creatures that he needs to take care of for his country to survived. Good thing is that he was a fan of everything Medieval before he was transported into this whole new world. He was forced to rule his country despite his abilities and knowledge about the new world.
If I would describe this book in one word it would be Magical. Yes you read it right, Magical, this book is full of magic, wizards, different creatures like goblins, vile creatures, werewolves, rat-like-humans that is the main hindrance in Alfred’s way to rule peacefully. This book is not just for middle graders but both young adults and adults alike who would love this quick read.
Smorynski really knows how to capture the attention of his audience and made us read until the very last page of the book. Know how the story goes, how Alfred will beat these creatures to save his country and how he will rule this Medieval Kingdom by getting yourselves a copy. You will thank me afterwards, you’re welcome. 😉
August 23, 2018
Couldn't put it down.
It's The Hobbit meets Magic Kingdom for Sale, Sold! meets Lord of the flies!
Have you ever been a young kid that played video games? How about rpg's? Have you ever wished your video game was real life? For Alfred it comes true!
All your wildest childhood dreams come true in this book. This book has it all. Dungeons. Dragons. (Well not dragons, but there is a giant vulture) Romance, go for a kiss Alfred! Dimensional travel. It speaks about chivalry, honoring your parents, honoring women, self sacrifice, humility, I could go on, but you just need to read the book! I read tons of books and listen to tons of audiobooks, and I haven't enjoyed a book this much in years. Not since I first read the Hobbit, or any of the Drizzt Do'Urden books, or Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (most recently). This book is geared towards younger audiences, but I don't see how any adult, or any fan of the fantasy genre couldn't enjoy it thoroughly. I'm not ashamed to admit it brought tears to my 39 yo eyes (more than once). It tugged on many emotions. Going through difficult times recently, the book actually inspired me. Yes it did. I just loved it. New all time fav. Right up there with my other ALL TIME favorite books. I find the life of the author to be quite interesting and inspiring as well! I'm not surprised in the least he was able to tell such a wonderful story.
It's The Hobbit meets Magic Kingdom for Sale, Sold! meets Lord of the flies!
Have you ever been a young kid that played video games? How about rpg's? Have you ever wished your video game was real life? For Alfred it comes true!
All your wildest childhood dreams come true in this book. This book has it all. Dungeons. Dragons. (Well not dragons, but there is a giant vulture) Romance, go for a kiss Alfred! Dimensional travel. It speaks about chivalry, honoring your parents, honoring women, self sacrifice, humility, I could go on, but you just need to read the book! I read tons of books and listen to tons of audiobooks, and I haven't enjoyed a book this much in years. Not since I first read the Hobbit, or any of the Drizzt Do'Urden books, or Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (most recently). This book is geared towards younger audiences, but I don't see how any adult, or any fan of the fantasy genre couldn't enjoy it thoroughly. I'm not ashamed to admit it brought tears to my 39 yo eyes (more than once). It tugged on many emotions. Going through difficult times recently, the book actually inspired me. Yes it did. I just loved it. New all time fav. Right up there with my other ALL TIME favorite books. I find the life of the author to be quite interesting and inspiring as well! I'm not surprised in the least he was able to tell such a wonderful story.
August 8, 2017
Alfred is a typical eleven-year-old boy who spends most of his spare time playing video games on a second-hand computer he was gifted. He is an only child and lives with his mother whom he sees as beautiful and sometimes odd in the way she speaks and dresses. Alfred sees it as old fashioned. Alfred is drawn to books, as well as video games of medieval times, something which has his mother uneasy every time it’s brought up. He also sends his mother into a frenzy when he asked about his father, whom he has never seen or heard of.
One night, Alfred summons an old wizard by saying the name “Bedenwulf.” He believes this to be his father name. The old wizard appears to be out of sorts and has no memory of who he is or what he does yet he manages to transport Alfred into another world, a medieval one. There, they learn the old wizard’s name is Tirnalth, and they meet a faithless cleric on the way, Verbogen.
In the fantasy land, Alfred encounters creatures such as werewolves and gargoyles. He is told that he might be the only surviving heir to rule the kingdom and that an evil witch has driven the entire kingdom into despair. Alfred is determined to fit into the role of King and save his people.
This book was basically advertised as something similar to Harry Potter so immediately it caught my interest. It’s a brilliant middle-grade story and reminded me of Rick Riordan at times. I laughed during this book so the author captures humor well but here’s my concerns about things that could’ve been done differently. Firstly, Alfred is eleven years old and I feel like there are times he sounds more like a preschooler with the excited clapping, and at other times, Alfred is sharing all this knowledge with people. Maybe rework the characteristics for an eleven-year-old boy and the story would work beautifully. With a little editing, this story is a gripping and exciting one for fans of J.K. Rowling and Rick Riordan.
One night, Alfred summons an old wizard by saying the name “Bedenwulf.” He believes this to be his father name. The old wizard appears to be out of sorts and has no memory of who he is or what he does yet he manages to transport Alfred into another world, a medieval one. There, they learn the old wizard’s name is Tirnalth, and they meet a faithless cleric on the way, Verbogen.
In the fantasy land, Alfred encounters creatures such as werewolves and gargoyles. He is told that he might be the only surviving heir to rule the kingdom and that an evil witch has driven the entire kingdom into despair. Alfred is determined to fit into the role of King and save his people.
This book was basically advertised as something similar to Harry Potter so immediately it caught my interest. It’s a brilliant middle-grade story and reminded me of Rick Riordan at times. I laughed during this book so the author captures humor well but here’s my concerns about things that could’ve been done differently. Firstly, Alfred is eleven years old and I feel like there are times he sounds more like a preschooler with the excited clapping, and at other times, Alfred is sharing all this knowledge with people. Maybe rework the characteristics for an eleven-year-old boy and the story would work beautifully. With a little editing, this story is a gripping and exciting one for fans of J.K. Rowling and Rick Riordan.
January 1, 2019
Alfred: The Boy Who Would Be King by Ron Smorynski is a great beginning to a young teen series. Alfred is a young boy who enjoys video games and suddenly is in a medieval kingdom--a land of magic and powers beyond the ability of men and he, a young boy, is the king. Even though I'm a grandma many times over, I really enjoyed the book and know that I have several grandkids that will find it fascinating. Two worlds are linked magically through space and time and readers are introduced to goblins and ratkins, wizards and knights, and the boy king. There are forays into a Dark Forest, encounters with a hairy bear-beast, and a fantastic battle scene. So many 'funtastical' characters and action-packed scenes. I look forward to reading the other books in this series.
I won this book in a contest from The Book Club Network and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.
I won this book in a contest from The Book Club Network and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.
November 17, 2018
Just finished this fun adventure. Reminded me a little of Narnia, Lord of the Rings with all the battles and King Arthur with the knights, kings and how they were trying to help people.
Review to follow.
Review to follow.
August 20, 2021
How do I read it I don’t know how to read it
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews