Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce
It’s something like Mulan where the girl pretends to be a boy so that she gets to do what she really wants. In Alanna’s case though, she aspires to be a knight while her twin brother, Thom, prefers to be a sorcerer. However, their father was going to send Thom to the court of the King to train to be a knight while Alanna was to go to the convent to learn to be a lady.
Then, Alanna has a brainstorm. Why don’t they switch places? She’ll go to Corus to learn to fight and Thom will go to the City of Gods and learn to be a sorcerer. Now this is like the story from The Parent Trap! They will also need to tell Coram and Maude, who will be travelling with them to their destinations. Their father would be too busy with his books to even realize that the twins had switched places.
Alanna is lucky when she reaches the palace as she made a very good impression on Prince Jonathan and his friends. She calls herself Alan of Trebond. On the other hand, she also manages to make an enemy. Ralon of Malven is a bully and he decided to pick on ‘Alan’ when he spotted him.
Life isn’t peaceful if you’re constantly being bullied discreetly by somebody. Alanna is smaller in size but she’s adamant to not let anyone else think that Ralon’s been hitting and punching her. She is determined to fight her own battles. Therefore, she is determined to fight off Ralon herself for once and for all. But first, she needs to learn to fight properly. That’s where Coram and George help her learn the tactics of fighting. George is also Alanna’s new friend. He’s the King of Thieves, by the way. Robin Hood comes to mind now, eh?
The Sweating Fever happened next and one of Alanna’s friends succumbed to the sickness. That made Alanna feel guilty for not using her Gift of healing to heal him. When Prince Jonathan fell ill and was on the verge of dying, Alanna uses her healing gift to help him fight off death.
It’s believed that the Sweating Fever was deliberately caused to make the royal family fall ill. Is somebody after the throne? The culprit would be a really powerful sorcerer then. George and Alanna discussed this among themselves. They are also suspicious of Jonathan’s cousin, Duke Roger who has returned to the palace to teach Jonathan and Alanna how to use their Gifts properly.
I first read this book many years ago and immensely enjoyed reading about Alanna’s journey. It’s definitely a page turner and I just couldn’t put the book down. This book is one of a kind, a totally different fantasy story and also one that encourages girls to strive to achieve their goals. Well, we don’t really need to dress up as boys to do that, do we?
All the same, this is the first book in the Song of the Lioness series. There are 3 more books to go.
Buy Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness)
May 11th, 2008 at 5:05 am
I loved this series too. My favorite by Tamora Pierce though is the series about Daine.
Em(Quote)
May 16th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
May 19th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Em: Hi! Have you read all the four books? Daine? Hmm, never heard of him/her! I’ll go find out more about it though. =) Josette(Quote)
January 30th, 2009 at 7:14 am
ive read all of her books, they are awesome…luv the heroines, all books nowadays are about boys boo, hi you(Quote)
January 30th, 2009 at 9:44 am
boo: Hi! Nice to meet another Tamora Pierce fan. Yes, we do need more books with female heroines.
Josette(Quote)
March 13th, 2009 at 9:28 am
I LOVE Tamora Pierce. My mother used to read the Alanna books to my sister and me when we were very young. “Alanna the First Adventure” was the first chapter book that I have ever read and continue to read her books to this day. I have also gotten many other young readers to enjoy her books. Rachael(Quote)
March 13th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Rachael: Hi! It’s great that you were exposed to reading when you were very young. I first read the Alanna book when I was 12, I think. The book belonged to my sis and we still have it now.
I hope to read more of Pierce’s books later on. Josette(Quote)
August 20th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Seriously, you capital-N Need to read this book. Tamora Pierce (the author) is a genious!!! I have all of her books but this one is by far the best! I love how all of her books have confident, female butt-kickers with just the right mix of action, magic and romance (but not so much of the romance one in this particular one). Phoebe(Quote)
August 22nd, 2009 at 11:25 pm
Phoebe: I read the books because of the heroine too. Yup, just the right elements to make it a great read! Josette(Quote)
August 26th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
i loved this book its a great read and i recomend it for grade 6 and up
Its a great book
u go tamora piecre Alanna(Quote)
October 10th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
@Alanna: No doubt it’s a wonderful book.![](http://www.booksloveme.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=)
Josette(Quote)