From School Library Journal
Grade 5 Up-- Shimmer, the dragon princess, pursues the quest she began in Dragon of the Lost Sea (1988) and continued in Dragon Steel (1985, both HarperCollins). Although she possesses the magic cauldron capable of reclaiming her clan's lost sea home, it is damaged. With her loyal companions, the children Thorn and Indigo; her former enemy Civet; and the trickster-hero Monkey, Shimmer now seeks the only being capable of repairing the cauldron. Monkey recounts their headlong flight from one adventure to another, with ever-higher stakes, until at last they inadvertantly release the evil Nameless One, who threatens the entire world. Cementing their friendship with insulting wisecracks, heroic rescues, and enormous sacrifice, these companions clearly value group loyalty above personal honor. Yep draws from Chinese folk tradition to paint landscapes and situations with an "Arabian Nights" extravagance. The characters in this action-adventure are sketched in broad strokes, without the subtle shading found in his realistic stories, Dragonwings (1975) and Child of the Owl (1977, both HarperCollins). Readers with a taste for dragons will want to join Shimmer on her quest, which is far from complete. --Margaret A. Chang, Buxton School, Williamstown, MA
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--Ce texte provient d'une édition qui n'est plus publiée ou qui est non diponible.
From Kirkus Reviews
The further adventures of dragon Princess Shimmer (Dragon of the Lost Sea, 1982; Dragon Steel, 1985), who is still attempting to restore her lost home. Shimmer, the Monkey wizard, the witch Civet, and two human children (Thorn and Indigo) are all seeking the Smith and his wife Snail Woman in their fabulous flying mountain: only their old magic is strong enough to repair the fabulous Dragon Cauldron so that it can once again hold the sea and pour it back to form the dragons' home. They succeed, but only after loosing a terrible evil--the Nameless One, strongest of the wicked Kings from the past--and only after Thorn loses his human life and becomes bound in the Cauldron as its soul. Writing and images here are powerful enough for this to stand on its own; Yep's strong, earthy characters are notable as individuals even when a reader coming into the middle of the sequence doesn't know their history. Meanwhile, characters from Chinese folklore--the Monkey trickster, the dragon--continue to give this ripsnorting fantasy a special flavor. More to come. (Fiction. 10+) --
Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
--Ce texte provient d'une édition qui n'est plus publiée ou qui est non diponible.
