Aidan of Oren: The Journey Begins

We had the author into our school so I bought the audio tapes for students to listen to. I was surprised to find out he never had any input in the characters voices. He was very disappointed in the way 'they' had one of the characters sound. I thought is was good, the kids like it, but more importantly, they love the story.

A friend recommended this book to me because my son's name is Aidan and he loves dragons. So, I contacted the author to purchase a signed copy for my son. What an incredibly nice person he turned out to be! So we were hoping we'd really enjoy the book since the author was such a nice guy...and we weren't disappointed. It is a fast paced engaging story with a lot of humor and moral value. It never becomes preachy or talks "down" to children. The characters are admirable but a child can relate to them. There was a few scary parts (my son is 7) but just enough to keep the pages turning. Some of the characters are quite amusing. The only downside and this was minor, was the cliffhanger ending. Since this is the first of a trilogy and the second book should be released soon, I would definitely recommend buying the first and second book together so a younger child doesn't have to wait too long to find out what happens next! The illustrations are beautiful. Some of the phrasing is really quite elegant for a children's book which pleasantly surprised me. So enjoy the journey for it's worth it!

Family members will enjoy time well spent reading Aidan of Oren with their children. The chapters flow and the story is captivating throughout enhanced by delightful illustrations. The end undoubetly takes one's breath away; but, this just ensures an even deeper breath in anticipation of the next book. In this era of immediate gratification, we the readers are encouraged to formulate our own hypotheses as we use our imaginations transforming ourselves into this enchanting continuing story. For teachers, this is a wonderful guide for comprehension and introduces, in a fun way, techniques for recall throught the whole story. Furthermore, Aidan of Oren offers multi-curriculum opportunities for hands-on learning involving maps, plays, social standings, problem solving, conflict resolution, prediction, grammar and magnificant vocabulary. Educational tools such as journal entries, group readings, discussion questions and following up opinions with 'facts' from the book are enhanced by the magic of the story itself and the colorful characters within. Aidan or Oren is so welcomed in this day and age where life is too serious for the young. Kids still need to be kids and escape, even if just for a little while. Thank you, Mr. St. Jean for sharing this tale iwth us.

Fans of the Lord of the Rings or Chronicles of Narnia series have a new resource to share with the younger readers in their families. Ohio author Alan St. Jean recently released the first volume in his planned trilogy, Aidan of Oren: The Journey Begins (Moo Press, October 2004, hardcover, 207 pages). Aimed at readers ages nine through twelve, this first installation introduces young Aidan and his brave quest for peace. Themes of bravery, loyalty and friendship permeate the tale, which will captivate the attention of both young readers and families who enjoy story time aloud. Charming illustrations by Judith Friedman bring the characters to life and lend Celtic charm to the story line.

This was a very charming story. If the author actually finishes the series, it has the potential to become a classic, as young people who read it today introduce it to their own children years hence. The publishers suggest Aidan or Oren for third and fourth grade readers, and from the level of the sentance structure and vocabularly I'd agree. I think that pre-literate and early literate children would also enjoy it as a "read-to-me" book as well, although they may have to have some of the vocabularly explained. Words are age appropriate and introduced repeatedly in different sentences so that meaning can be learned from context and practiced, but the work is not so repetitious that is boring or pedantic, something that might irritate an adult reader. The world of the children is delightful, and each child is an individual as are the non-humans Charles and Damon. The world of adults is kept in the background and viewed as it probably is to most children, as full of "advisors" and "teachers" and social interactions of which children are not a part but to which they are important. While the action of the story is probably a little tame for an older child, the trials confronted by the central characters of Aiden and his friends McKenzie and Lilly, are those of real children who have reached the magic age of thirteen, since the story is a coming-of-age tale. Thirteen is that pivital point between childhood and adulthood that is full of discovery, especially self discovery, when every child learns who he or she is and what they are meant to become and to do. While most children are not confronted with dragons or talking birds, elves or trolls, they are confronted with changing roles and expectations that can be equally magic at one time and frightening at others. In the story Aidan discovers his abilities and his "destiny" with the help of his capable peers. He learns, among other things, that the responsibility of leadership is the well-being of others, and that while one person, even the leader, cannot know and do everything, the group or community may. Truely an enjoyable book; well written and well crafted.