Dragon's Egg

No promises... but here I go again!..

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book : 1 Dragon's Egg by Sarah L Thomson

Hardcover: 272 pages
Publisher: Greenwillow; 1 edition (October 2, 2007)
ISBN-10: 0061288489

Product Description
It is a rare talent, and only she can care for the Inn's herd. She feeds them, gathers their eggs, and tends to their injuries. But Mella dreams about the dragons of legend, even though hardly anyone believes they still exist. Dragons are small farm animals, not huge fire-breathing monsters. Everyone knows that.

Until one day changes everything.

A Knight of the Order of Defenders arrives at the Inn. Signs of the mythical dragons have led him there, he says. Then a simple errand takes Mella through the forest, where she stumbles across a dragon's egg—and faces the true, terrifying dragon guarding it. On the spot, Mella vows to get the egg safely to the fabled Hatching Grounds. She must leave her home for the first time, and she finds an unlikely companion in the Defender's squire, Roger.

For Mella and Roger, this one day is the beginning of an adventure. Where will it take them?

Ok, so this is a rather smallish YA book, double spaced for easy reading.. and I have to tell you, be it my love of dragons or what I don't know, but this little story grabbed me and made me read it within 2 days !

Yep it was one of those, this is a: to cute to stay away from, book!

When Mella found the dragon's egg (and at first she didn't know what it was) and then discovered a rather large fierce dragon that had been sent to bring it back to the hatching grounds, she had no idea what she was in for!

Written as a very good adventure.. not too much, not too little.. but just about right for the age of the kids and what they might or might not be able to handle, this story was a good one. Very enjoyable. I would like to see a sequel to this story and these characters, although there is no indication that there will be one.

This would be an excellent choice of a book to read to younger kids.

Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Harrison Ford is making the rounds on television for the opening of the new Indy movie..

It always amazes me that more than a year after they actually make the movie, and have long since moved on and possibly even made other movies, that they are now expected to remember things about something they did so long ago, and act like it was “just the other day”.

I realize most actors have excellent memories.. I mean lets face it they are continually memorizing lines and actions for the movie. But after you’ve read more scripts that are offers for other movies that they must get, and possibly have made yet another movie, (memorizing all the things they need to for that movie) then they are expected to forget that newest one and remember the old one. The funny part is that sometimes an interviewer is actually surprised that they might not remember everything... hello? And what were YOU doing a year ago?? Heh.

On GMA this morning Harrison used the whip… He talked a little about being out of practice and how the “whip master” taught him to use it.. I think what I love most about Harrison, is that he never seems to be egotistical! Well, that and the fact that he’s still gorgeous, *grin.

Next he appeared on Regis and Kelly, where they talked about the fact that one day Harrison flew himself to where filming was by Helicopter. ( ahhh, ok Harrison I’ll go quietly! Fly me to the moon baby!! Woohooo!)

With just a little bit of luck… ok.. more than a little bit of luck.. I MIGHT be able to go see the movie today (Friday). If that doesn’t pan out it will be a week from Saturday before I can go…but you can bet that I don’t want to miss this movie!!

I Love the reluctant hero.. I love Indy.. and I love Harrison for doing them so well…and I believe my “actor crush” is deserved because I truly believe Harrison is one of the good guys.

The Book of the Dragon

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book 5: The Book of the Dragon by Ciruelo

Hardcover: 144 pages
Publisher: Union Square Press (June 30, 2005)
ISBN-10: 1402728115

Product Description Amazon:
The mystique of dragons--soaring above castle spires, setting the world aflame--bursts into glowing life in breathtaking images by a major artist. An unforgettably original volume, The Book of the Dragon offers a glimpse of a culture we can only imagine.

They lurk in the most hidden corners of the world: the powerful and beautiful creatures known as dragons. We know them as the terrifying beasts of fairy tales, but their own story has remained a mystery--until now. Ciruelo, an illustrator of astounding skill, delves into their secret universe, revealing a rich and fascinating culture filled with poetry, magic, enchantment, and knowledge. Each of these wondrous creatures has its own unique personality and history, and it's captured dramatically on these spectacular pages. But the revelations go beyond the images, as we gain insight into their psychological characteristics; encounter many different types (Earth Dragons, Water Dragons, Fire Dragons, and the legendary Golden Dragon); learn about their long-held customs; and explore the many legends in which they have figured so prominently--including the heroic tales of Perseus, Hercules, and Tristan.

Although this book gives you "information" about dragons, and then some short stories (myths) about dragons.. the biggest thing it gives you is the beautiful art of Ciruelo. (If you like Dragons at all it's worth the time to visit his website.)

Let me show you some of what is waiting inside for any owner of this book...

I just love these two drawings. One was the inside cover in the front of the book.. the other the inside cover of the end of the book.

Tristan and the Fire Dragon..

A princess will be the reward for anyone slaying the dragon. (where have I heard that before? heh) Tristan sets off to kill the Fire Dragon by means of first extinguishing his fire with a bag of water hung over the entrance to the dragons den. While on his quest another follows Tristan figuring if someone kills this dragon he may be able to take the credit for it and marry the Princess.

Tristan kills the dragon but not before a long and tiring fight. When the fight was over he cut the tongue out of the dragon to bring back as proof, but then falls unconscious. The man who followed Tristan comes and cuts off the dragons head and returns to the king to collect his prize. When Tristan returns he finds the King will give his daughter away because the head of the dragon was brought to him. Tristan tells the king to ask the dragon who killed it, the king thinks him crazy. Then Tristan tells the king to look in the mouth of the dragon, which he does and finds the tongue missing. Tristan hands the king the dragons tongue... and wins the hand of the Princess.

Jilocosin...

Jilocosin is a story of a dragon who can turn into a human man and becomes a troubadour in a castle. One day when on his way back to his cave, walking through the forest as a human, he comes across a woman being assaulted. He turns into the dragon and slays the attacker, takes the woman and her bundle back to his cave to care for them. The bundle turns out to be a baby, and the attacker was trying to kill the baby. The woman stays with the dragon and falls in love with him (in his human form) but knows he is a dragon. A few years later she dies in childbirth and the dragon raises both children who eventually become knights and even find and kill the man who assaulted their mother.

Favorites...

This two page story told how dragons kept humans to care for them.. and had their "favorites".

The stories in the book were not the greatest (along with the fact that I don't care for short stories) but then again, I did get this book for the artwork... and in that respect it surely did not disappoint!

...and this concludes yet another round of Quest the First for the Once Upon A Time Challenge!!

The Mislaid Magician

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book 4: The Mislaid Magician or Ten Years After by Patricia C Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books (November 1, 2006)
ISBN-10: 0152055487

Amazon:
In this third magical mystery involving two letter-writing cousins, the women's quiet lives of domesticity are interrupted when the Duke of Wellington asks Cecelia's husband to look into the disappearance of a German magician in the north of England. Cecelia and James hurry to investigate, leaving Kate and her husband to care for their six children. The story is told in the form of the correspondence between the wives as well as the husbands, until the mystery is solved. Suggest this Harry-Potter-meets-Jane-Austen series to romantic-fantasy readers, but strongly encourage them to read the earlier ones first.—Jennifer Stubben, Barrington Area Library, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Set in an alternate England in which wizardry exists, this sequel to Sorcery and Cecelia(2003) and The Grand Tour (2004) takes place in 1828. After placing their children in the care of cousin Kate, Cecy and her husband investigate the disappearance of a railway surveyor-magician and the strange properties of ley lines--powerful, invisible channels of magical energy. The story unfolds through the characters' letters, in which the formal locution of the period is leavened by the wit and chattiness of good friends sharing revelations and confidences.

This third installment takes place 10 years (and a number of children) after The Grand Tour.

The first book was in the form of letters between the two female cousins Cecy and Kate. The second book took the form of writings into their journals. This third book goes back to what started it all.. letters between Cecy and Kate. This time though we also get to read some correspondence between the magician husbands, Thomas and James.

It starts off as a simple "will you watch the kids so I may accompany my husband for a few weeks"... into , yep you guessed it... another mystery for them to figure out. So, wile Cecy and her husband are off trying to figure things out, Kate and her husband are left at home watching all the children. Although it might seem that Kate and Thomas got the short end of the deal, let me tell you that enough things happen to them during this time to keep letters from both sides interesting and compelling to read on and on.

It actually gets pretty funny because you go from one mystery to things that are happening with Kate as she watches both her own kids and Cecy's children. Toss in a few letters from the husbands and the sister from hell and you have a good read!

In my opinion it's well written. I certainly can imagine myself in England back in the 1800's, and the fact that these two authors have managed to make being a wizard something of a normal state of being is really great.

I enjoyed this series mostly because I really think the way it's written is a nice change of pace and very enjoyable.. but I also think it may not be for everyone.

It's a bit of a period piece, along with a mystery for each book, and then on top of it all you feel as if you are "listening in on their lives" as it all happens via the letters and journals. Very original and very enjoyable.. I applaud Patricia C Wrede & Caroline Stevermer for this trilogy of writing.

Just as an fyi... book one (Sorcery & Cecelia) can be read as a stand alone book.

2008- So Far...

The photo below is the list I am keeping of the books I read in 2008...

When I look at this list (so far), I see old friends (Pern, Belgarath, Raistlin etc), and I see new friends, (Bartamaeus, Mary Russell, Cecelia etc) and I see time enjoyed inside my books.

Knowing this I still wonder, how come it's enjoyable just to look at your books even when you aren't reading them? The people and places in those books, and of course the mystical creatures, are not real.... yet they continue to make me smile, and continue to make me wish I could run away to those special places, with those special people and live some of the lives that are only real in authors heads. Creepy huh?

A Beauty, A Beast, and a Rose

You must be sick of me mentioning Roy Dotrice or anything about Father on Beauty & the Beast. Well............. one more time! But this time it has to do with the fact that I just purchased all 3 seasons of Beauty and the Beast on DVD!! ohhhhhhhh yeah!

Lookey Lookey!! They came in the mail Saturday, and I watched the first dvd which had 4 episodes on it. B&B ran from 1987-1990.

As much as I remember each episode (and amazingly I do remember !! I say amazing because it was never in rerun!) as I watch them... I find that I still forgot ..just how good they were!

Linda Hamilton never looked so good. (yeah, some guys will argue with that and say she looked better in the Terminator...but Nah.. it's not true!)

Perlman's makeup, was outstanding, and so were the costumes and every prop they had "below ground". For instance, I forgot that Father's (Roy) opening scene was in his "library"!! He had rows and rows of books!! (and you wonder why I love Father! cha!)

Exquisite costumes!!! I think the next time I see Armin I will have to discuss the costumes with him! I could never say enough good things about the people who did the costumes or the set designs and displays, so I will try to say it in just two words.

Absolutely Phenominal.

And just so I had a new photo to show ... I had forgotten (CRS) I had one of Jay Acovone who played Linda Hamiltons boss on the show.

And here's a little trivia for my book friends... George RR Martin wrote 14 of the 56 episodes for Beauty and the Beast and was consultant on many other episodes!! I guess we now know why Roy Dotrice did the audio versions of A Song of Ice and Fire! (which I would give anything to have, even a poor copy!.. just fyi , heh)

Strangely, Armin (Pascal) was in 14 episodes. It seems to be a magic number.

I managedto watch 2 dvd's of season one (8 episodes). I saw one episode that George RR Martin wrote, it was called Masques, it was a Halloween/ costume party, which allowed Vincent (the beast) to walk among normal people because they thought he had a costume on. It was also about an Irish writer who told a story about a man and woman, where he couldn't live in her type of life, and she couldn't live in his, yet the loved each other. (sound like Martin?)

I am surprised that he worked as a consultant on other episodes. This is what happens when a really good show gets lost and never hit reruns..things you missed the first time around, ... stayed missed.

I'm already glad I bought these dvds... though I truly thought I would never buy a television series on dvd. I never even bought my own friends show of Star Trek! (but of course they are forever in reruns, so no real need... though if they hadn't been so expensive I would have gotten them, just to have.)

So now I get to watch Roy A LOT! And that makes me happy, even if many years have passed since they were first aired. And occasionally one of his other movies pops up on the telly... and I do get to look forward to Hellboy II !! (even if only a small part, I will be thrilled to see him once again, as he is now)

I have to say this, especially to anyone who watched Beauty and the Beast and liked Roy's character of Father... you have to rent Cheech & Chong's Corsican Brothers and see Father like you've never seen him before or will again! lol

And lastly, I tortured myself (yet again!) searching for an audio cassette of Roy narrating Watership Down. *sigh* ..geez, who would think an audio tape would be so hard to find??? I mean, I'm talking Watership Down for gosh sake, not the over $1,000 price for George RR Martin's book in which Roy does hundreds of voices!... why do I torture myself? ARGH!

I'm Ba-a-a-d

Have you ever watched a bad movie just because an actor you like happens to be in it?

I have.

And I did just that this morning on TCM.

It was called The People That Time Forgot (1977) ..and it was so "corny" it was almost laughable! But it had one thing.. or rather, one person in it that was always so gorgeous to me that I couldn't not watch it.

The actor?

Oh!.. that would be Doug McClure. And if you look below you will see the eye candy that he was!! (well, the woman will.. the men can just be jealous)

(below is what caught my immediate attention! Hello?! Can you say "gimme, gimme gimme!?" lol)

Next is a very young Doug McClure, woof! What a cutie he was!

Here's a nice shot of Doug with John McIntire in the television series The Virginian. His character name was Trampas.

next is just a gorgeous shot of his irresistible smile!

And lastly the photo in my collection.....

Since I purchased this from a dealer I can not be positive that it's an authentic autograph but I sure hope it is, because I adored Doug McClure and I like thinking this autograph is real.

Educated at UCLA, this blond leading man long made a career of apparent agelessness. He played one young sidekick after another through numerous movies and one TV series after another, playing 20ish roles into his late 40s. Although he made more than 500 appearances in his career (counting TV episodes separately), he is undoubtedly best remembered as Trampas in the series "The Virginian" (1962) and and Backtrack! (1969). McClure was fighting cancer the last couple of years before his death; despite this, he continued working, appearing in Maverick (1994) as one of the gamblers, as well as in Riders in the Storm (1995) and episodes of "Burke's Law" (1994) and "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues" (1993) which didn't appear until after his death. McClure got a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame shortly before his death.

I'm sure no one under the age of 40 , will remember most of those television shows! lol

Even though the movie I was watching with him in it will never make the list of top 10, it was worth suffering through it.. just to see Doug!

(This was every bit as bad of me to do as it is when I buy a book because of its cover!! sheesh! well, I guess eye candy remains eye candy, in more ways than one!)

The Grand Tour

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book 3: The Grand Tour: Being a Revelation of Matters of High Confidentiality and Greatest Importance, Including Extracts from the Intimate Diary of a Noblewoman and the Sworn Testimony of a Lady of Quality by Patricia C Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

Hardcover: 480 pages
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books (September 1, 2004)
ISBN-10: 015204616X

Both book covers: Jacket Design by Kelly Eismann

Amazon.com
In this elegant, old-fashioned rambler, a sequel to the historical fantasy Sorcery and Cecilia, a party of five Brits (three of them are wizards)--Kate and Thomas Schofield, Cecy and James Tarleton, and Lady Sylvia--takes a "grand tour" of 19th-century Europe. What promises to be a pleasant exploration of old world antiquities and fancy shops turns out to be an adventure of a lifetime when Cecy receives a mysterious alabaster flask (a coronation treasure) from an agitated Lady in Blue. Before they know it, they are wrapped up in a magical conspiracy to take over Europe.
Written in two voices by two different authors, the novel alternates between Cecy's deposition and excerpts from her dear friend and cousin Kate's diary. Despite the crisp, clever dialogue and wonderful character subtleties in this Jane Austen-style comedy of manners, readers may be confused by the episodic nature of the novel whose mysteries take their sweet time in unfolding.

From School Library Journal
Grade 8 Up–Cousins Kate and Cecy, first introduced in Sorcery and Cecilia (Harcourt, 2003), are married to Thomas and James and honeymooning in Europe. With continued echoes of Jane Austen, the marvelous mixture of fantasy and Regency romance easily captures readers' interest. The alternating voices of Cecy, in her deposition to the Joint Representatives of the British Ministry of Magic, and of Kate, in her commonplace book, tell of married life, attempted robberies, murder, magic spells that work (and a few that backfire), and the search for the reason for a series of mysterious thefts of arcane historical artifacts that are linked to magic and a king's coronation. On their tour, the newlyweds take their place in European society, meeting well-known historical figures such as Beau Brummell and various noblemen and magicians. The plot moves at a sedate but steady pace befitting the period, and the characters shine as they struggle with their magical legacy and grand adventure, while they try to prevent the coronation of a new Napoleon. This book will appeal to fantasy readers who appreciate something more sophisticated than Harry Potter-style magic.–

This is book 2 of a series of books by Patricia C Wrede & Caroline Stevermer, the first being Sorcery & Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot.

Once again Amazon did a good job at reviewing this book. It is only a short period of time from Sorcery & Cecelia to The Grand Tour. In this book both girls married the magicians that they were involved with. They had a double wedding and are going on the Honeymoon Grand Tour together, along with Lady Sylvia (also a magician).

In Society back in the 1800's when these books take place, it is proper for a Grand Tour of Europe to get to know who's who and to be seen in all your splendor.

The book is a mixture of the grand tour of that time, and a mystery that begins to unfold along the way.

In the tradition of movies I've seen such as Sense and Sensibility, things do not move quickly, and are done most proper for the coming out of such ladies.

I found I enjoyed the book quite well, but not quite as much as the first book.

It was nice now that the two married couples were involved in things and the fact that you were reading whan each girl wrote down in their private journal, made you, once again, feel like you were snooping!

I think I most enjoyed the way the authors have set these books up... first you read the letters the cousins wrote to each other in Sorcery & Cecelia, and now you are reading the entries of their journals. This give you two different views as you go along and keeps you on your toes.

I'm not sure these books are for everyone. They might be more of a women's book, but I've found them a nice change of pace (in time and place) and just plain enjoyable.

Next I will read the third book of the series, The Mislaid Magician or Ten Years After. (Love the titles of all three of the books!!)

Just in Case you Slept Through GMA...

One week and counting! Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull!! Oh man!

This morning Good Morning America interviewed Spielberg/ Harrison and Lucas.. you can see interview from Good Morning America by clicking the link !

Meanwhile.. here's a few screen caps I did while I watched the interview for the 4th or 5th time.. but who's counting?! heh.

Indy, Indy, Indy!! It just can't get any better! Thank you Harrison, Steven and George!!

Horns & Wrinkles

I'm not sure I can do 5 more books for a fourth time.. but while the challenge goes on I'll keep posting my reads until it's officially over!

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book 2: Horns and Wrinkles by Joseph Helgerson

Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; 1 edition (February 18, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0618981780

From Booklist:
Twelve-year-old Claire and other Blue Wing townsfolk know there's something magical about living along the Mississippi River. How else can they explain Claire's bullying cousin Duke suddenly finding a rhino horn growing where his nose was? Or Duke's parents mysteriously turning to stone? Seeking antidotes, Claire, who "can't resist an adventure," joins Duke and a motley trio of river trolls on a quest filled with obstacles, magic, and mayhem that ultimately leads to a showdown with a Rock Troll, who may hold the key to it all. Folksy charm, inventive fantasy, and diverse characters blend in this offbeat river tallish tale.

I have to admit that the artwork on the cover AND the title caught my attention some time ago and is probably what made me buy the book! I was really curious of the title.. one could "see" the "horn" part of the title but "wrinkles??"

Well I sure don't want to give away the meaning of the title. I will say you do find out before it's all over! heh.

Duke and Claire are cousins who hang out together, but it turns out that Duke is quite a bully, even to his own cousin. Each time Duke is mean and bullies Claire his nose grows (flashes of Pinocchio flash thru my mind).

I'm sure everyone knew a bully when they were young. Hopefully you didn't have to deal with the bully,but if you did, you could only wish his nose would grow!

Claire becomes the one to deal with river trolls and rock trolls and even a blue wing in order to try to save Duke and family members that the trolls have turned into stone.

Have you ever had to deal with trolls? Ah, well.. me either, but yaknow.. we all do what we must to get thru life.

This was a cute fantasy story, and along with the artistic illustrations by Nicoletta Ceccoli the adventure that Claire and Duke live through comes to life.

A very enjoyable book indeed.

Blogging Tip & A Backyard Adventure

Today I planned just to show a few yard photos... and I still will. But first Kim of Bold, Blue Adventure is asking for blogging tips, and or.., complaints.

Well, the only tip I have is.. when you are stuck on something.. BEG! Eventually someone comes to your rescue! heh..

I keep my blog in 3 places. Yah I know ..dumb.. overkill. But when I first started blogging I heard of someone in aol who lost his entire blog which he had been writing well over a year. So I decided to "back up" mine.

Now.. I am not a Techy Type. (boy am I not!) But I can copy and paste! So that's what I do! When I began I started in aol journal.. I did manage to learn where to type it up and how to get a picture on the journal... from there, as I said.. "copy and paste" to blogspot and to wordpress. (I didn't mean to have 2 backups but I got mad at blogspot and was looking to move and so pasted into wordpress)

Blogspot changed... used widgets and such.. no more templates (my main blog still has the old template!) I have not mastered a thing with the new "layout" most especially widgets.. and even more so in wordpress!! so.. when I can no longer copy and past I will be up a creek. Which will be sooner than I hope because I am nearly out of the free space aol gives me to upload photos to. Oh there is a secondary place, but when I upload to aol pictures and then add them to my journal.. they are way smallerthan what I want! so.. not sure what will happen when I run out of space at file manager in aol.. like I said, it will be sooner than I like.

Anyway... Copy and Paste is my only "tip" in blogging lol... but I do have one complaint: I HATE the pop up things that happen when you mouse goes over something! It totally interferes in my reading!!! It really annoys the heck out of me and it seems to be written the the scripts of many blogs now so one does not have a choice if they use it or not... maybe it's my age, but I really dislike it!!

(pop ups like this.. drive me crazy! how about you?)

****************************************************

(I guess I should stop putting up pictures like this that "aren't necessary" because I am almost out of room to upload to... anyone have suggestions? )

Kester and Woody take a walk in the yard....

An Oldie but a Goodie

Ok.. so.. who here doesn't know that Star Trek has/ had a big part in my life?

If you are one that doesn't know that, then you are a newbie to my blog!

I came across this Youtube video... it's old. But when I saw the name of it, I knew that I had seen it loooooong ago and remembered it. (I'm already smiling)

Kevin Pollack.. he's a really good comic, and a fantastic impressionist. I think this skit he does about Star Trek, Kirk, and if other people played the parts of the rest of the cast is nothing short of phenomenal.

There isn't one impression that isn't right on target... and if you've never seen it.. please click on it now and have a good laugh. If you have seen it before.. then you already know how funny it is.. go ahead, watch it again!

Kevin has been in some 78 movies or TV but I personally remember him most as Rool (a brownie) in Willow and as Jacob Goldman in Grumpy Old Men. (loved those movies!)

Quest the First... One More Time

So... someone commented (I won't say whooooooo lol) that I have done Quest the First many times... so I went back and checked. Low and behold I am numbered wrong! Here's what's gone on until now...

The Journey: Ingraine the Brave- Cornelia Funke

Quest the First:

1- Dragons of Autumn Twilight

2- Dragons of Winter Night

3- Dragons of spring Dawning

4- Time of the Twins

5- War of the Twins by Weis & Hickman

Quest the First:

1- Test of the Twins -Weis and Hickman

2- The Wood Wife- Terri Windling

3- The GooseGirl- Shannon Hale

4- On the Edge of the Dark Sea-Andrew Peterson

5- 13th Reality James Dashner

Quest the First:

1- Runemarks-Joanne Harris

2- Sorcery & Cecelia-Wrede & Stevermer

3- Red Dragon Codex- RD Henhan

4- Queste-Angie Jones

5- Once Upon a Time in the North- Philip Pullman

Quest the First:

1- The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane- Kate DiCamillo/

So.. that's where I stand and I have 1 more report ready, (Horns & Wrinkles) and have begun "The Grand Tour", (that will give me 3 of the 5) so I'm guessing I will fulfull Quest the First for the 4th time.. heh.. I mean, we have till mid June, right Carl?

Quest the First...

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Book 1: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo

Hardcover: 228 pages
Publisher: Candlewick (February 14, 2006)
ISBN-10: 0763625892

Amazon:

This achingly beautiful story shows a true master of writing at her very best. Edward Tulane is an exceedingly vain, cold-hearted china rabbit owned by 10-year-old Abilene Tulane, who dearly loves him. Her grandmother relates a fairy tale about a princess who never felt love; she then whispers to Edward that he disappoints her. His path to redemption begins when he falls overboard during the family's ocean journey. Sinking to the bottom of the sea where he will spend 297 days, Edward feels his first emotion–fear. Caught in a fisherman's net, he lives with the old man and his wife and begins to care about his humans. Then their adult daughter takes him to the dump, where a dog and a hobo find him. They ride the rails together until Edward is cruelly separated from them. His heart is truly broken when next owner, four-year-old Sarah Ruth, dies. He recalls Abilene's grandmother with a new sense of humility, wishing she knew that he has learned to love. When his head is shattered by an angry man, Edward wants to join Sarah Ruth but those he has loved convince him to live. Repaired by a doll store owner, he closes his heart to love, as it is too painful, until a wise doll tells him that he that he must open his heart for someone to love him. This superb book is beautifully written in spare yet stirring language.

In reality, I couldn't write a better description of the book than Amazon did.

What a fantastic book! I am soooooo glad I didn't miss out on this one. It took me a while, when it sat on my wish list, but I finally sent for it and I couldn't be happier!

It was a "one read session"...but a superbly enjoyable one!

And I couldn't possibly leave without giving as much mention to the illustrator: Bagram Ibatoulline.

Bagram Ibatoulline graduated from the State Academic Institute of Arts in Moscow and has illustrated numerous picture books, including The Nightingale, Hana in