Reviews with content warning for Child death - Alanna: The First Adventure

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

8 reviews

fuchsiarascal's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Oh, Alanna, my 12 year old crush. I still love these books, but I’ll also readily admit that an almost-5 star rating is partly nostalgia (I gave it 5 on goodreads but since we can do quarters and halves here, figured I'd knock it down a bit to better reflect a non-nostalgic view too). I think the series and world Tamora Pierce built is great, but as far as the writing itself goes… well, it’s a product of its time (80s). Tammy herself has spoken on this, that she had to significantly pare down her early books because before Harry Potter, young adult novels just simply weren’t accepted if the manuscripts were over ~200 pages. As a result, this book goes from one event to the next with pretty much no filler. As I re-read it now for the hundredth time (…quite possibly literally), but also for the first time since 2012, I yearn for more filler, and also appreciate that Tammy’s later books (starting with the Protector of the Small quartet) were allowed to be longer and have room to breathe.

All that said, I still think Alanna’s books are SUPER important. Alanna’s journey is wonderful and resonates strongly with many who have ever been at odds with their assigned gender, for whatever reason. I simply didn’t want to do the “girly” things, but transgender and nonbinary people will find a lot of similarities, especially as she enters puberty. (And this evolves further as she grows up in later books.) As a 12 year old, reading a book in which the main character deals with her first period was unheard of! That definitely stuck with me. (It’s also one of the many reasons that I think everyone, regardless of gender, should read these books. Imagine normalizing menstruation!)

And, of course, there’s all the stuff of Alanna training to be a knight, facing struggles (both inward and outward), finding lifelong friends, and overcoming everything. This is just the first book in her accepting who she is, and she’s got a lot still to come, but seeing her build her confidence and hint at the bigger issues in later books is a great ride.

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jessereadsthings's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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theequestrianslibrary's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

My reviews contain spoilers! Read at your own risk!

So, this was my first audiobook! I liked the narrator well enough and the way she pronounced things helped me keep track of what was going on in the book. Alanna: The First Adventure isn't by any means a complicated book which made it even easier.

A classic fairy tale of a girl who wants to be a knight and disguises herself as a boy to join the palace ranks, Alanna: The First Adventure is written on the younger side of things, but still done well. Given the book was first published in the 80s, there could be some consideration for transmisia with discussions of "accepting your body for what it was born to be," especially when Alanna starts hitting puberty and has her first period. I don't think that was the intent by any means, but depending on the reader, it could be taken that way.

I do, very much, like Alanna. She's snappy, has an attitude, and doesn't put up with any crap from anyone. From the get-go, Alanna establishes herself among the boys and works incredibly hard to keep up with them. Her internal monologue, whatever is written, helps detail her thought process in training to be better and stronger than the boys. She's clever and witty, and willing to put herself through unfavorable situations in order to succeed. Her pride gets in her way sometimes, which I like, since Alanna is not one to ask for help.

The other characters were all relatively likable regardless of how much page time they actually had. Coram, the gruff mentor, was very fun in his exasperation with Alanna's antics. Jonathan, smooth-talking and relatively even, was likable for a prince. Ralon was annoying and dislikeable, as a bully should be. Gareth was funny, Raoul felt like a teasing older brother, and they were all enjoyable to listen to/read about.

I do think the names of some things were a bit childish all things considered, but I am used to more grown YA and Adult fantasy. I expected a stronger name for Alanna's sword than just "Lightning," but that's more a preference for myself than anything actually wrong with the books. Same with the names of the horses: Moonlight, Darkness. They just feel a little cheap, I think? But, I digress.

There are some things that aren't inherently realistic, like how quickly Alanna is accepted when she does reveal herself as a girl to a few characters. Sure, she's proven herself and that warrants respect, but that doesn't necessarily overstep beyond what is presumed to be hundreds of years worth of tradition. Not that following tradition always is good, but it does leave some consistency to be desired.

I did like the father/child relationship that develops between Alanna and Sir Myles. Despite his drinking problem, he does seem to genuinely care for her, and I appreciate the depiction of a healthy relationship between student/teacher and evolving into something a little stronger than that.

I do think the ending was a little Mary-Sue-ish? Suddenly, two kids waltz into an age-old city and save the day from a group of allegedly immortal beings without any preparation or training, or knowledge at all? It felt a little much to me, but I can only hope there's more involved there in the later books. Perhaps not, and then I am left with my own thoughts and interpretations!

Regardless, overall, I think the book was solid. It had a steady pace, didn't leave anything waiting, and just kept moving forward to tell its story. I liked the characters, I like the premise, and the atmosphere. I just had a few nit-picky things that are more prevalent to me than they are a fault of the book.

Would recommend this one!

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

This is a good introduction to Alanna and Tortall, setting up things that will play out fully in later books. The setting is a swords and sorcery fantasy (occasionally both in the same fight) in a vaguely medieval kingdom which various neighbors and internal factions. It also establishes the Bazhir and their complicated relationship with Tortall (partially absorbed through treaties and alliances with individual tribes, but not conquered), with the book's finale set in the desert.

Given that the Bazhir are loosely based on real desert-dwelling peoples (something which becomes abundantly clear in later books), it seems like a not-great thing for their prophecy to involve being saved by two people who come in from outside and fight a great evil which they either couldn't defeat or never tried to stop. Alanna (and probably Jon as well) is learning about the Bazhir for the very first time on the same trip where she and Jon combat this evil. It plays into a long history of white-savior stories in an uncomfortable way.

I first read this when I was Alanna’s age, and I’ve read it dozens of times since then. Alanna trades places with her twin brother, Thom, so that he can study magic and she can become a knight. In order to pull off the switch, Alanna disguises herself as a boy, and finds herself bonding with a slightly older group of boys who become squires while she’s still a page. She also faces a bully who torments her in her first year, having to figure out the difference between being good at combat and being a bully.

One thing I appreciate about this book is its chapter containing something which was sorely needed in the late 1980’s when this came out and which is still useful today: a brief and useful description of what a menstrual cycle is and how to care for one’s body when it happens. Because Alanna becomes a page at age 10, and only her manservant knows she’s a girl and not the boy she’s pretending to be, when she gets her period she doesn’t know why it’s happening and has to secretly get help to find out what’s going on. It’s handled quickly and with enough detail that someone who needs this information would at least have a starting point. I don’t like how Alanna’s protests about disliking her body’s trajectory are waived away as being what the Gods ordained, but it fits this story in which the Gods are very real, and one Goddess in particular seems to be taking an interest in Alanna.

This is a great start to the series while being a complete story in its own right, covering Alanna's first year of her life as Alan the page.

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sdemo08's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I absolutely adore Tamora Pierce. She may have been the first really author that prompted me to fall in love with reading. She creates amazing YA novels with stronf FMC no matter what their strength takes form in. We meet Alanna in this one as she decides to take her future in her own hands by switching places with her twin, taking up residence to become a knight. Everyone else she meets falls in love with her though they think she is a boy because of her unique ways and loyalty to her friends and her moral code.

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charm0nix's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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rini's review

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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iviarelle's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

With a caveat that this book has one scene that might be quite harmful/triggering to trans folks, I still really adore this book. If Pierce had handled Alanna's feelings about getting her period another way, it would be perfect for what it is. Unfortunately, instead of asking Alanna if she REALLY wants to be a boy, or if she just thinks it would be more convenient to becoming a knight even though she really does feel like a girl, the book just states that there is no way to change the body the gods gave you, so no matter how you really feel in it, you're trapped... I wish there could be a new edition to change that, I really do, because I'd love to recommend the whole of Tortall to basically everyone I know. It's not about Alanna really wanting to be a boy, it's a messy way of confirming that she really is a girl, and one that is, however unintentionally, harmful.

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