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4.35 AVERAGE
4.35 AVERAGE
This was one of my favorite series as a teen. I found this collection at the used book sale at the library and have been saving it for a comfort read. A coronavirus quarantine is as good occasion as any! It was as good as I remember. I love the fire lizards, the descriptions of Pern and Pernese music which is the focus of this particular set.
Dragonsong: 5 stars
This was the very first fantasy book I every read when I was young, now that I'm older my love hasn't changed, I cringe a bit more at the patriarchal nonsense that Menolly has to deal with in her home hold than I did as a teenager(30 years ago), but I still love her character and how strong she is.
Menolly has been assisting the old harper for the last year or so before his death because he could no longer play, when he passes away her father asks every single person that can hold even a bit of a tune if they will sing the deathsong until he's forced to admit that his daughter will have to do it. She also needs to teach the young their teaching ballads until the new harper arrives but she is not allowed to write her own music on pain of a beating and no one must know that a girl did these things when the new harper arrives.
Things progress until eventually she runs away to live in a cliff face where she impresses nine of the mythical(or not) fire lizards.
This is a short whirlwind of a story, but the pacing is good, the world building is very localized which is I think one of the reasons everyone suggests reading these in pub order, but I'm glad this was my first.
Dragonsinger: 5 stars
I don't know how many times I've reread this book but this is the first one in approx 10-15 years. This series is the reason I love fantasy so it was/will always be 5 stars.
Menolly has arrived at the Harper Hall, where she needs to be assessed by all the masters to see where her abilities are at, she also needs to learn that her abilities are a good thing and nothing to be ashamed of. She meets Piemur probably the youngest/smallest apprentice in the hall and they become fast friends, initially because of her fire lizards, because what little boy wouldn't want to be around mythical creatures(?) but they get along well and he helps Menolly find her way.
Her unlearning the attitudes of fear and shame instilled by her family about her abilities does happen a bit fast, but these aren't long books.
This one is more character driven than book one because it all happens in one location that is a relatively safe space, so we see her build friendships with a few people while she is tested by all of the Masters who are all very distinct personalities as well.
Dragondrums: 4 stars
While I don't love this as much as the other books in this trilogy I do feel like Piemur gets way more hate than he deserves. Piemur is practicing to sing a new ballad for the festival and he's for once super excited to be singing a girl's part, when he hits puberty and he suddenly doesn't know what to do, singing is all he's good at. He gets reassigned to the drumheights till his voice settles and he does spying(sort of) assignments for the Masterharper on the side because he's very shrewd and always knows more about what's going on than people credit him for. His last mission goes awry but because of his friendship with Menolly and all the stories she's told him over the years he does pretty well on his own.
I liked getting to see Piemur grow up, him clashing with the other drumming apprentices and on his various missions, I connected to it less as a teenager because 'gasp, it's about a boy!' but enjoyed it more as I grew up.
This was the very first fantasy book I every read when I was young, now that I'm older my love hasn't changed, I cringe a bit more at the patriarchal nonsense that Menolly has to deal with in her home hold than I did as a teenager(30 years ago), but I still love her character and how strong she is.
Menolly has been assisting the old harper for the last year or so before his death because he could no longer play, when he passes away her father asks every single person that can hold even a bit of a tune if they will sing the deathsong until he's forced to admit that his daughter will have to do it. She also needs to teach the young their teaching ballads until the new harper arrives but she is not allowed to write her own music on pain of a beating and no one must know that a girl did these things when the new harper arrives.
Things progress until eventually she runs away to live in a cliff face where she impresses nine of the mythical(or not) fire lizards.
This is a short whirlwind of a story, but the pacing is good, the world building is very localized which is I think one of the reasons everyone suggests reading these in pub order, but I'm glad this was my first.
Dragonsinger: 5 stars
I don't know how many times I've reread this book but this is the first one in approx 10-15 years. This series is the reason I love fantasy so it was/will always be 5 stars.
Menolly has arrived at the Harper Hall, where she needs to be assessed by all the masters to see where her abilities are at, she also needs to learn that her abilities are a good thing and nothing to be ashamed of. She meets Piemur probably the youngest/smallest apprentice in the hall and they become fast friends, initially because of her fire lizards, because what little boy wouldn't want to be around mythical creatures(?) but they get along well and he helps Menolly find her way.
Her unlearning the attitudes of fear and shame instilled by her family about her abilities does happen a bit fast, but these aren't long books.
This one is more character driven than book one because it all happens in one location that is a relatively safe space, so we see her build friendships with a few people while she is tested by all of the Masters who are all very distinct personalities as well.
Dragondrums: 4 stars
While I don't love this as much as the other books in this trilogy I do feel like Piemur gets way more hate than he deserves. Piemur is practicing to sing a new ballad for the festival and he's for once super excited to be singing a girl's part, when he hits puberty and he suddenly doesn't know what to do, singing is all he's good at. He gets reassigned to the drumheights till his voice settles and he does spying(sort of) assignments for the Masterharper on the side because he's very shrewd and always knows more about what's going on than people credit him for. His last mission goes awry but because of his friendship with Menolly and all the stories she's told him over the years he does pretty well on his own.
I liked getting to see Piemur grow up, him clashing with the other drumming apprentices and on his various missions, I connected to it less as a teenager because 'gasp, it's about a boy!' but enjoyed it more as I grew up.
adventurous
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Just reread this trilogy, which I think is the best part of Pern.
adventurous
medium-paced
I enjoyed reading about Pern from another angle - that of the Harpers and general non-dragonriders. I like how McCaffrey tied everything I read about the harpers, specifically Menolly and Piemur, in the first 3 books into this series. Everything came together well and I think each of these books was quite well done.
This was actually my first exploration of this world, having missed that there were really other books to start the series. Led to some confusion, but I still enjoyed this, and was glad to move on to the rest of the series.
This book is my first Pern book and perhaps that was a mistake on my part. Surely, the first books must have been better.
The book is engaging enough but somewhat silly in places and leaves the reader cringing one time too many. There are many Young Adult books that are super exciting no matter your age, but this seems to not be one of them. It also did not age well, fighting a terrible battle of the main character being a girl - which nowadays just sounds - well, possibly historical. But, OK, it used to be a problem, so OK, can't blame the story. Both main characters are more on the insufferable side, albeit for different reasons. Some inconsistencies were slightly off putting - so, the main character gets completely baffled when her friend goes through problems she literally just had herself a few chapters back - nope, could never imagine anything like that happening, right? A kid who had no trouble completely dominating his social environment suddenly becomes completely unable to manage it. Well, I guess situations indeed could differ, but the author doesn't even seem to try explaining that. Despite that, the world is interesting, the story is interesting, and I do not regret having read it.
The book is engaging enough but somewhat silly in places and leaves the reader cringing one time too many. There are many Young Adult books that are super exciting no matter your age, but this seems to not be one of them. It also did not age well, fighting a terrible battle of the main character being a girl - which nowadays just sounds - well, possibly historical. But, OK, it used to be a problem, so OK, can't blame the story. Both main characters are more on the insufferable side, albeit for different reasons. Some inconsistencies were slightly off putting - so, the main character gets completely baffled when her friend goes through problems she literally just had herself a few chapters back - nope, could never imagine anything like that happening, right? A kid who had no trouble completely dominating his social environment suddenly becomes completely unable to manage it. Well, I guess situations indeed could differ, but the author doesn't even seem to try explaining that. Despite that, the world is interesting, the story is interesting, and I do not regret having read it.