G’day bibliomaniacs! The book for November 2025 is Eragon by Christopher Paolini. First published in 2002, Paolini was only 15 years old when he began writing it, and continued the book into the four-book series The Inheritance Cycle.
The story begins as Eragon, a young boy in a remote village, discovers a blue stone that hatches a dragon. With the help of the grumpy village storyteller, Eragon sets off across the empire of Alagaësia, and what’s not to love about dragons, magic, and a quest for revenge, only tempered by the young novice’s lack of supernatural knowledge?
“I don’t understand.”
“Of course you don’t … that’s why I’m teaching you, and not the other way around.”
-Christopher Paolini, Eragon
One of the most fascinating things about this series is Paolini’s approach to magic. He gives us a set of rules as vital as the laws of physics, yet explains them in a way easy to grasp. This magic system is admittedly similar to A Wizard of Earthsea, but it approaches certain core ideas of the spell working differently than in Ursula Le Guin’s novels. Paolini’s description of personality, especially that of Brom and the dragon Saphira, makes the reader feel as if they get to know the characters.
The worldbuilding of this book, as well as the depth and detail of the story, was what caught my fancy. I would encourage any bookworm to embark on a journey with Eragon. This book is one of my favourite comfort reads.
- Rating: 𝙿𝙶
- Author: Christopher Paolini
- Published: 2002
- Review: ★★★★☆