Eragon

Eragon is the first part of the series called Inheritance written by Christopher Paolini. The second one is titled The Elder and the third one Brisingr. The last one is not published yet.

This young author began to do researches for his novel at the age of 14 in 1998. To create the powerful and mysterious setting of the story, he drew his inspiration from the Beartooth Mountains in the wild region of Montana, where he spent his childhood. During 2 months, he read works about how to write a scenario and create characters, as well as mythological reports. At 15, he started to write the first book of the series, Eragon. He even got the idea to create different languages for each race of imaginary creatures such as the elves, the dwarves or the Urgals. 2 years later, the work was finished and it was published in the United States in 2003. Thanks to a perfect scenario and an elaborate and original language, the book became quickly a bestseller, to the great surprise of this talented author and his family.

The book tells the incredible story of Eragon, a poor farm boy, who is spending a simple life in a village of the Empire of AlagaËsia, until the time when he discovers a polished blue stone in the forest. He doesn’t know then that this stone is actually a dragon’s egg which will turn his life upside down. The legends he was told turned out to be reality as he became a powerful Dragon Rider, heir to a select caste that the king Galbatorix wants to eradicate. Eragon is only 15 and the fate of the empire rests in his hands. He will have to cover many kilometres to escape dangerous creatures such as the Urgals or the Shade who are trying to kill him. He will also learn the ancient language that enables him to use magic, learn how to handle a sword or to ride a dragon. An other important character is Brom, the story-teller. He will teach Eragon everything about the dragons, the riders, the elves and the dwarves. But the closest friend of Eragon is his dragon, Saphira. They can read in each other’s mind and are complementary.

I bought this book because I knew it was something known and appreciated by a lot of people. It is not the kind of story I usually read, but I loved it. There is a lot of action and fantasy, a bit of humour and romance. The characters are various and have each their own personality. I let my imagination carry me to a world of power, magic and destiny. The landscapes, towns and protagonists are so well described that it’s not quite difficult to see them while we are reading. There is also a map in the book to help the reader follow the route of Eragon through the cities, mountains, forests or deserts.

Amélie Bulon