Cronan the Librarian

Steve Westcott
FrontList Books (2008)
ISBN 9781843501022
Reviewed by Sandie Kirkland for RebeccasReads (5/08)

Cronan, the Ogmus Librarian, is starting the most important journey of his life.  Once, the Ogmus people lived in the world and flourished.  That ended when their allies, the good dragons, were tricked into moving to another world where they were trapped.  That led to the Ogmus population being forced underground, living inside a mountain, as they were persecuted by the BlackAbbot masters who now ruled the world, and their evil black dragons.  Now Cronan and his apprentice, Tobias, are charged with going forth and discovering if the predictions in the cryptic Book of Prophesies are true.  Those prophesies reveal the return of the good dragons, led by the famous dwarf magician Snor'kel and the defeat of the BlackAbbots and their black dragons.

On the journey, Cronan and Tobias meet an amazing cast of characters. There's BlackBishop, the leader of the BlackAbbots, and his son, Jophrey, along with their unflappable manservant, Wooster.  Wild Bill Halfcock, a wild mountain man, joins the travelers.  They travel through the Great Forest where they meet the Beastie Boys, a band of little people.  The expedition is drawn to a village, where they pick up Nina, a beautiful young girl and her grandmother, Nanna Pussy.  How all these characters interact leads the reader on a puzzle-solving maze, where each character provides a clue to make the entire story mesh and become whole.

Those readers who enjoyed the Harry Potter series will enjoy this book.  The characters are vividly drawn, and are enticing.  The reader is absorbed into their world, wanting to find out what happens next. The plotting is tight, and the initial dilemma is satisfactorily solved.  The book appears to be the beginning of a series, with the ending leading to another adventure.  “Cronan the Librarian” is highly recommended for young adults and fantasy lovers.