欧宝娱乐

OH YES! This review makes my heart soar. The Star Wars connections are undeniable, and I cannot believe that ANYONE, let alone 70% of American eight graders swallow this mad-lib story and sing its praises afterward.
The publishing company part made me chuckle... heheh.

Well, if America's eighth-graders can fail to be the astrolabe that guides our literary figurehead, then we may be lost, indeed. =P

I always knew there was something terribly wrong with this book, I just couldn't find it.

Wow- I am actually glad I read that clap-trap of a book so I can relate to your awesome review! You are absolutely right!

Keely wrote: "I think the reason I keep returning to Pulp novels is that the authors wrote silly adventures without any pretense of grandeur, while today's authors are more likely to lament that their redundant escapist yarns aren't in the literary canon yet."

Amen. Not all, but most.

I am out of the closet as a YA pulp fantasy lover... I thought Eragon was good. I found his use of magic and the laws of magic throughout the book to be unique and exciting.

I have my own unhealthy obsession with fantasy, and it's lead me down many interesting roads. It's been a while since I read this book, but I don't remember anything unique about it. I'm curious what it was about the magic system that stood out for you.

Cass wrote: "I am out of the closet as a YA pulp fantasy lover... I thought Eragon was good. I found his use of magic and the laws of magic throughout the book to be unique and exciting."

I haven't yet read the Earthsea books (though they're definitely on my list), but I'm told that the "true language" in which you can't lie and the words of which create magic is kind of exactly the same as the language of the dragons in Earthsea. :P

Keely wrote: "It's been a while since I read this book, but I don't remember anything unique about it. I'm curious wh..."

I can't even remember now exactly why it impacted me. I loved the use of "true names" (which I know is a common magic/elven theme). I think I loved the simplicity. To use magic you had to know the Word, use some problem solving skills (ie transform sand to water or raise water from the deep), have enough energy for it, and have enough faith.

I love the way it acknowledges simple physics and has magic actually require energy to be used.

I like that magic dimishes over distances.

I think the rules are so simple, I just liked them.

I hate this book... so much. I think because it's so much like so many other things he lifted from and I struggle trying to make original stuff!

So unfair

Well, the problem is, there are no really original ideas. We all get our ideas from other things, and that's not a bad thing. Every book of fiction is a critique of what that author has read: they reuse what they like, and they avoid or play-down things they dislike.

The real problem seems to be when an author has a very limited set of inspirations from which to draw (like Paolini). This results in a very cliche, familiar story.

The secret to writing well is to develop a wide and varied experience. That way, the author is not tied down to one way, but can choose from many different methods, selecting the one which best fits the situation at hand. So we must all keep reading!

yeah. they could at least season the stew a bit differently instead of just repeating the same recipe.

Oh my God, I read this and Eldest a few years ago but I wasn't that knowledgeable about fantasy stories. I only now realised how its exactly like star wars. Even in the 2nd book there was a twist that's straight out of star wars.

Heh, that's funny, I never read the second one. Isn't it interesting how sometimes we don't notice something until someone points it out to us, then it's like "how didn't I see it?" I know I always like it when someone reveals something new to me about a book.

Thanks for the comment.

It was inspired by an Akira Kurosawa movie.
But, I do not really want to just copy someone else. I kind of want them to copy me

Jonathan said: "Also technically speaking Star Wars is hardly unique because it was inspired by the earlier works. I remain convinced that some Shakespeare ended up in there..."

I'm not sure how much of a difference that makes, since all works are inspired by earlier works. Show me a modern story that hasn't been affected by Shakespeare.

And then, there is Shakespeare himself, who never wrote an original plot in his life. All of his stories were based on plots from earlier tales which he rewrote. The only two which didn't come from older stories simply didn't have much plot.

Synesthesia said: "[[Star Wars] was inspired by an Akira Kurosawa movie."

Actually, if you compare Star Wars to Hidden Fortress, there are a lot of large differences, it's hardly the same kind of plot carryover as Star Wars to Eragon. There is the bumbling comedic duo, roguish general, and tomboy princess, but otherwise, the two films are very divergent. There isn't even a 'young hero' figure in Hidden Fortress, for example.

I'd say a lot of the success of Star Wars was because it drew on so many different inspirations: movie serials, Kurosawa, Joseph Campbell, the French comic book 'Valerian', and others. In my experience, the more varied the inspirations an author draws on, the less derivative and predictable their work will be.

"But, I do not really want to just copy someone else. I kind of want them to copy me"

I've always found that desire kind of problematic, since 'being different' isn't really a choice (despite what some identically-dressed rebellious teens may think). Every book is a response to what that author has read, taking inspiration from they admire and attempting to be different from what they condemn.

I've never seen an author who was capable of divorcing themselves from their inspirations and writing something 'original', usually, authors who attempt to do so are ironically more predictable and less unique.

After all, those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it, so those who fail to study the history of literature are doomed to write repetitive stories. Look at Goodkind, Martin, and Paolini: all authors who claimed they were completely reinventing the genre, but who all wrote fairly predictable monomyth fantasies of one sort or another.

If an author does want to develop a unique voice, they're better off finding a myriad of different inspirations to synthesize rather than insisting on fewer inspirations. I'm not saying Paolini shouldn't have taken inspiration from Star Wars, or Lord of the Rings, I'm saying that his inspirations were too narrow, so he ended up directly copying instead of combining sources (though I think, like most inexperienced authors, he didn't realize he was doing it).

Fifteen when he 'started writing', for whatever that means. I find the point when a finished product was released a more concrete date from which to judge.

I mean, The Worm Ouroboros wasn't published until Eddison was forty, even though it was based on stories and characters he had been working on since he was a child.

Wait. He was only FIFTEEN??? Never mind! I need to change my review from 1 star to FIVE! WOW! The author being fifteen makes that book fantastic!

I dunno, a lot of people who break young end up burning out or getting stuck on writing in the same style for the same audience ad infinatum. In my experience, to write well means to live a strange, varied, and vivid life, which some people do manage to do by their teens, but not very many, and not Paolini. His age does not impress me because there is nothing about this book that exceeds what I would expect from a precocious teenager.

The fact that many fully-grown, thick-bearded authors also write like guileless, mooning teenagers not withstanding.

If you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all I'm tired of haters eragon is amazing

Naw. I would rather speak the truth than be polite. It really is not a very good series. I think this fellow should have been made to revise his books before publishing them if he wanted BETTER books.

Yeah, if a book's just not that good, that's what my review is going to say. I figure, if a book is so amazing, then it shouldn't be very hard for its fans to defend it, instead of just spouting cliches about 'haters' and 'nothing nice to say'. How about 'if you don't have anything interesting to say, don't say anything at all'?

I agree with that. I must say interesting is better than nice. Though, one can be critical and be very polite at the same time. It's useful to be told how to improve a story.

Yeah, definitely. Just saying you liked something or didn't is pretty useless, it's better to actually have something to say about why you felt that way. And yeah, criticism can vary on how polite or mean it is, but I figured, with Paolini comparing himself to 'great authors', there was no reason to take it easy on him.

I didn't rate the book differently based on his pretentious comments, I just didn't feel I had to couch my criticisms in polite niceties. If he had come out humbly and acknowledged that he had a long way to go, I probably would have written a less confrontational review. It's not that I wouldn't point out the flaws, but I tend to be more respectful to authors who comport themselves in a respectful way. Few things draw my ire more than mediocre authors who are full of themselves.

Elain wrote: "If you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all I'm tired of haters eragon is amazing"

Elain, what you're saying could be extended to mean that if one isn't going to give a five star review, one shouldn't give a review at all. By being concerned with the pride and ego of an author we are limiting the entire point of goodreads. An author I respect said that she would not do the above, because she would not want to be on the receiving end. With all due respect, I feel that is a foolish mistake because then you close yourself off from positive growth. What Keely said isn't necessarily mean, it is a criticism and if there's one thing I hope all precocious teenagers should be able to do, it is to learn from their past actions and grow into capable adults. One can only hope that Paolini will try again and be even more successful. As a fan, I would think you might want that as well.

Eragon is the best book ever! It is perfect for 9 year olds like me

I suppose it all comes down to what sort of nine year old you are.

But what about my fun? Sure, it's alright for them, they can pick up most any modern genre book and be positively overawed by novelty, but all I have to subsist on anymore are my own bland witticisms.

Sure, like a game of chess against myself.

Actually, that is often the process I go through when I write reviews, though you only get to see the side that 'wins'. However, if you look closely (and I'm not suggesting it's worth your time to do so), you may notice I sometimes say things like 'some might argue that the author was going for X' or something like that, and that's usually an indication that I'm pitting two different theories against one another and seeing which is stronger.

Writing reviews often reminds me of doing lab reports in Chem, where I would always have to state the limits of my experiments, the weak points in my arguments, and contradictory hypothesis which might change my interpretation. Though I sometimes hope that someone will come along and give me a really different view, and maybe even change my mind, in most cases, I end up being my own strongest critic. Then again, it's easier for me to see my weaknesses from the inside, just as it is in a game of solo chess.

Yeah, praise tends to feel pretty empty to me. It's nice and all, and I do appreciate it, and I am thankful that people feel inspired to come out and say it, but it doesn't really lead anywhere. Whenever I hear 'it's good, I liked it', I always want more: what did you like? what parts were good, and what made them good? what parts needed improvement? do you think the pacing fits with my progression of ideas? does the characterization make sense internally? and all of that.

I mean, someone can like something without actually understanding it, and I would rather be understood than liked. What tends to affect me--and it's fairly rare--is when someone comes along and comments on some specific, subtle point which they recognize and find interesting, because those small moments are really what motivate me to write--they're the things I want to be able to share with the world.

Hi, I'm in sixth grade and I thought it was time I looked at the Eragon series, a friend recommended it to me, actually.
Now that you mention it, some Star Wars traits are beginning to stand out.
Now I'm not so sure about it but...I am still going to read it.
Btw, did you say the author was eighteen when he wrote this?

The book was also recommended to me by a friend. Paolini said he was fifteen when he first started writing it but rewrote it and finished it a few years later.

You nailed it. Especially love your description of it as "the first Star Wars film with a Lord of the Rings paintjob". That's exactly what it is.

Yeah, sometimes it's pretty obvious where people are getting their ideas.

Great review keely, I detested this book. I found it drab and uneventful. All of my friends and family loved it and read the next two, I thought maybe there was something wrong with me. I'm so glad I read your review and I'm soooo glad I did not read the next two!

Paolini was 15 when he wrote this book. ;)

He started working on it at fifteen, but it wasn't finished and published until he was eighteen. I mean, some of the characters and stories in The Worm Ouroboros were originally developed by the author when he was a child, but that isn't the same as saying 'the book was written by a child', since he didn't finish the book until adulthood.

Eragon is simply the first Star Wars film with a Lord of the Rings paintjob totally agree!

Yes, I agreed that The writers had too much goal that went out of his hand with Eragon. I do love the plot but the use of word just seems鈥� what? Pushy? Unnatural?

You know, TBH I've been thinking about the unoriginality lately, and while I don't think it's any less original than before, I also don't think it's entirely ripped off from Star Wars and LotR. It's more cliche than ripped off from those elements--the princess fleeing with the special object, yadda yadda, is a lot more of a common plot device than something uniquely used by Star Wars. So I wouldn't say it's ripped off from those works, it's simply very generic.

(That's not a defense of Eragon, btw--I do agree that it does not make Eragon any less unoriginal.)

And I definitely agree that the "he's fifteen!" thing is not very valid. Not only does he compare his work to other literary greats, like Keely said, it's obvious that it's written by a teenager. I read Eragon, searched up the author, found out his age--yep, saw that coming a long way before. And I NEVER give any slack to authors simply because it's their debut book, or that they were young when they wrote it, or some other clumsy excuse. I read good books PERIOD, not good books by this standard or that standard.

And not to mention the awful, awful prose and pacing of this book. There's a passage that really stands out in my mind when Paolini spends half a page describing a lamp. A lamp that has zero relevance to the plot or characterization and does nothing but bring the entire narrative to a grinding halt.

I'm sure he was just setting up really important lamp-related plotlines in later books.

Keely wrote: "I'm sure he was just setting up really important lamp-related plotlines in later books."

*laughs*

If only, Keely. If only. *disappointed face*

I remember that lamp. *bitter*

its kinda funny how you compared it with star wars i never noticed the similarities until you pointed them out id have to agree but i still love the book. iv read and own them all

You could probably compare the majority of any story with star wars or lord of the rings.

how do i review or comment on books? i just joined this site and i would like to know how. anyones help would be greatly appreciated

Taylor wrote: "You could probably compare the majority of any story with star wars or lord of the rings."

Even as fun as I found the books they are definitely based off 40 percent Lord of the Rings, 40 percent Star Wars and a whole mixture of other archetypical fantasy books....

Kris wrote: "how do i review or comment on books? i just joined this site and i would like to know how. anyones help would be greatly appreciated"

never mind i just found out how lol

Keely wrote: "Yeah, definitely. Just saying you liked something or didn't is pretty useless, it's better to actually have something to say about why you felt that way. And yeah, criticism can vary on how polite ..."

it's kind of a funny story because even though i recognized the blatant copies and his low-developed writing skills i enjoyed the book, mainly because it made me work really hard imagining it because paolini is not good describing, i liked the second one more but that's just because i had some experience with the characters and the world, it's not a masterpiece but for me it was an entertaining way to lose my time