Young Merlin series by Jane Yolen

July 20th, 2006 by cathy

I just finished the Young Merlin series by Jane Yolen, and LOVED IT! Unfortunately, its only a trilogy. I was hoping that the cover was lying and that she changed her mind and wrote more in the series. There are three books (it is a trilogy after all). Here they are:
1) Passager
2) Hobby
3) Merlin

In Passager, the book starts with a small boy of about seven or eight years who has been trying to survive in the woods for about a year on his own. He sleeps in trees so that the wild dogs don’t attack him. He’s malnurished because all he eats are berries and small fish. His clothes became tattered and fell off long ago. One day he spots a man in the forest, and listening him speak, he begins to recognize words. He follows the man to his home and after much work, the little boy begins to consider the man and his family his own.

In Hobby, things have happened that separate him from his new family. He meets up with a magician and his wife and upon finding out that the boy’s dreams have a habit of coming true, they find ways of using the boy to make money. After making a couple of dire predictions, he is separated from the couple.

In Merlin, the boy goes back into the woods. He has over the four years since leaving the forest, lost some of his ability to survive alone. After being attacked by dogs, he is saved by a wild man. After the wild man leaves, Merlin follows him at a distance, until they reach a clearing and Merlin sees a large group of other wild people. They find out that Merlin has profetic dreams and they cage him up. His only friend is a small boy named Cub, who we eventually find out is the future King Arthur.

I love the Authurian style fantasy. There is a little bit of fantasy, a little bit of history. I highly suggest this to anyone who is at a loss for things to read this summer. It is both serious and lighthearted.

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