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pandaorb 's review for:
Dragonsong
by Anne McCaffrey
I'm going to declare this my official introduction to Anne McCaffrey. Being a fan of [a:Margaret Weis|869|Margaret Weis|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1371065031p2/869.jpg], [a:Tracy Hickman|868|Tracy Hickman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1360040119p2/868.jpg], and [a:Piers Anthony|8516|Piers Anthony|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], McCaffery's work was frequently recommended to me as another fantasy author of the era. While I made a half-hearted attempt at reading [b:Dragonflight|61975|Dragonflight (Dragonriders of Pern, #1)|Anne McCaffrey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388182243l/61975._SY75_.jpg|2467422] many years ago, I didn't get further than a few pages.
This little YA novel was recommended by a friend who absolutely loved it growing up, and Pern, in some ways, feels a lot like Xanth. This particular plot also reminds me a bit of Princess Cimorene's plight from [b:Dealing with Dragons|150739|Dealing with Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #1)|Patricia C. Wrede|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385526967l/150739._SY75_.jpg|1178402].
Parts of this book were difficult for me.
- The opening chapters detail ongoing emotional abuse from Menolly's parents and sister. This is way more depressing than I expected from a YA novel about music and dragons!
- There is also the totally unacknowledged ethical dilemma of Benden Weyr stealing eggs from the Old Queen. Menolly Impressed her nine fire lizards in the presence of their queen after she helped to save the entire clutch. Whereas later in the novel, 31 eggs are simply taken away without knowledge of the queen so that they may be distributed primarily to people who have no compassion for the fire lizards and want them solely for power. No one, including Menolly, seems to have an issue with this. Seriously??
- This is a little novella with a MUCH larger backdrop than I have an understanding of. There was so much happening towards the end that felt like it was extremely important in Pern in the grand scheme of things, but that was weakly related to Menolly's story. This made it feel like less of a stand alone book than I expected.
Overall Dragonsong was a good introduction to McCaffrey that detailed an imaginative world and told a tale of hope. There were just some things that really threw a cloud over the tone of the story for me, and ultimately I wish I'd had more background on the world before jumping into this one!
This little YA novel was recommended by a friend who absolutely loved it growing up, and Pern, in some ways, feels a lot like Xanth. This particular plot also reminds me a bit of Princess Cimorene's plight from [b:Dealing with Dragons|150739|Dealing with Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #1)|Patricia C. Wrede|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385526967l/150739._SY75_.jpg|1178402].
Parts of this book were difficult for me.
Spoiler
- The opening chapters detail ongoing emotional abuse from Menolly's parents and sister. This is way more depressing than I expected from a YA novel about music and dragons!
- There is also the totally unacknowledged ethical dilemma of Benden Weyr stealing eggs from the Old Queen. Menolly Impressed her nine fire lizards in the presence of their queen after she helped to save the entire clutch. Whereas later in the novel, 31 eggs are simply taken away without knowledge of the queen so that they may be distributed primarily to people who have no compassion for the fire lizards and want them solely for power. No one, including Menolly, seems to have an issue with this. Seriously??
- This is a little novella with a MUCH larger backdrop than I have an understanding of. There was so much happening towards the end that felt like it was extremely important in Pern in the grand scheme of things, but that was weakly related to Menolly's story. This made it feel like less of a stand alone book than I expected.
Overall Dragonsong was a good introduction to McCaffrey that detailed an imaginative world and told a tale of hope. There were just some things that really threw a cloud over the tone of the story for me, and ultimately I wish I'd had more background on the world before jumping into this one!