In my youth, I enjoyed Terry
Brooks’ first three Shannara novels so much that I revisited them numerous times. But I had
never read the prequel to his first novel, The Sword of Shannara, which he published roughly two decades later, and
it has been a long time since I’ve read any of his stories.
I found diving into First King of Shannara refreshing, and
at the same time comforting, hungry as I was to recapture the magic his novels once held for me. Brooks certainly
knows how to tell an entertaining story, and his prose flowed smoothly as he
introduced me to his characters and the dilemmas they faced. He threw a lot of history at me in the
opening chapters, but then he gave me a breather as Bremen returns to Paranor,
the center of Druid learning. There he
tries to warn them that the evil Brona is leading an army of Gnomes, Trolls,
and Skull Bearers to invade the land. I enjoyed meeting his friends, and hoped that he could convince the council to
accept his arguments. Unfortunately,
just as they once expelled him from their order, the Druids refused to see his
point of view. So they again cast him
out. But this time, some of
his friends accompanied him, recognizing his wisdom, and the urgency of the
situation.
Returning to Shannara as I did, without remembering much
from the original trilogy, the novel struck me afresh, yet soothed me with a
sense of déjà vu. I enjoyed following
the protagonists as they fought Brona’s minions, sought out the magical items
necessary to combat the villain, and repeatedly faced off against the forces of
evil. I felt sad when the characters I
had come to care about died, but rejoiced in the survivors’ triumphs. With his prequel, Terry Brooks left me
satisfied, and interested in rereading that first great novel, The Sword of
Shannara, as well as the ones that immediately followed.
As a teen, J. R. R. Tolkien’s novels left me wanting more
great stories like The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. In Terry Brooks, I found a writer who sated
my hunger. While my palate has evolved
since my teens, it’s comforting to know that I can occasionally order a former
favorite off the menu, savor its familiar flavors, and leave the table
satisfied. If, after watching Peter
Jackson’s films, or reading Tolkien’s books, you find your stomach rumbling, might I suggest a house special: one of Terry Brooks’ delicious
and satisfying Shannara entrees?
Dragon Dave
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