Sword Quest

SWORDQUEST is about a white dove called Wind-Voice. Wind-Voice is a slave for the evil ruler of all archaeopteryxes, Hungrias II. One day Hungrias wanted to celebrate the finding of another Leasorn gemstone by eating Wind-Voice. The rumor of the Leasorn gemstones is that it will lead to a sword that will destroy all evil. Luckily, Wind-Voice escaped along with another almost doomed bird, Winger the woodpecker. The two traveled... Read Full Review

I must admit that I was skeptical of how a story about birds at war with each other could have much essence of Chinese culture. However, my skepticism quickly died. Nancy Yi Fan's Sword Quest contains several Chinese elements. The key and more obvious elements that I was able to find are the importance of family, nonviolence, Yin and Yang and the belief in good and bad spirits. A major Chinese element in Sword Quest is the... Read Full Review

Following the enchanting Swordbird, Sword Quest is better! How interesting that this book is a prequel and can be read alone but is better when reading them in order. Nancy Yi Fan says her next book will fall between the two books sequentially so there looks like we may have another great series in the making. As a Reading teacher, my 6th graders loved this book and so did I! The way the birds become human-like characters... Read Full Review

My third grade son claims Sword Bird as his favorite book and says that he liked this prequel "almost as much." He reads constantly, so naming a book as a favorite is a big claim for him. He and a number of friends his age have reporting loving Sword Quest because the characters and action are so interesting. I think they also are intrigued that it was written by such a young person.

My 7-year old son and I read Swordbird first before reading this prequel and I enjoyed both books every bit as much as he did if not more. To think a 12-year old girl imagined this wonderful story filled with rich characters is both humbling and fascinating. I dearly hope Nancy Yi Fan will continue writing this series. I would put her series in a league near Harry Potter.