The Last Dragon

by Silvana De Mari and Mari De

Book Overview

When the last dragon and the last elf break the circle, the past and the future will meet, and the sun of a new summer will shine in the sky. In a world shrouded in darkness and continually lashed by rain, a young elf named Yorsh struggles to survive. His village has been destroyed by the torrential waters, leaving Yorsh suddenly orphaned and alone-the earth's last elf. But soon Yorsh discovers he is part of a powerful prophecy to save the world from...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1423104056
• ISBN13: 9781423104056
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 10 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 5 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

This book is beyond good

When I was younger my school library had the book but I was never able to finish it. It took me years to find this book again but as I read it I realized my younger self would not have appreciated the story. If you have a chance to read this I would recommend it ten times over.

a Wonderful "Children's Book for Adults"

This book caught me by surprise, I thought it was something my son would love, but this is a wonderful adventure full of bittersweet insight and tender romance.

Sacrifice

This is an incredible story of the sacrifices we make for those we love. While I originally purchased this for my dragon-crazy son, I enjoyed it far more than he did. The story line deals with keeping promises, enduring hardships, and sacrificial love, all woven together in the lives of a girl, an elf and a dragon. A beautiful story!

The Last Dragon Book Review

"The Last Dragon" Silvana De Mari The Last Dragon is truly an amazing book. This book takes place in a semi-medieval time. There is an elf named Yorsh. His real name is really long and hard to pronounce. Yorsh is just really little when this book starts out. His village drowned in a flood and he is the last elf. Humans hate elves, they are scared of them. A lone elf in a world full of humans, is not the greatest scenario ever. Things are not looking up for Yorsh. In his adventures he meets up with a woman named Sarja and a hunter, together they escape being hung and other things. Eventually they meet up with the last dragon. Yorsh promises to take care of the last dragon, who happened to forget his name. This book will capture your attention. I didn't want to pot it down once I started reading it. The events that happen after Yorsh meets the last dragon are really exciting. I can't tell you what they are, otherwise that would spoil the story. This is one of my all time favorite books. If you are into fantasy I would recommend reading this book. Even if you are not an avid fantasy lover, I think you would enjoy this book. I know I did. There is a prophecy in the book that will leave you pondering upon it's meaning. Yorsh certainly ponders on it a lot. The prophecy mentions the last dragon, the last elf, and other things. It also mentions something about who he is "destined" to marry. Yorsh is quite confused about it's meaning. For most of his life he had thought that he was "destined" to be alone forever. Or however long it is that elves live. Fenna Marsh

Moving, epic fantasy tale

This book was so wonderful! Last night as I devoured the last chapters, I was alternately laughing, gasping in fear, weeping tears of sadness, and finaly, weeping tears of joy. I can't remember the last time I read a book that moved me so deeply (and I read a LOT in my profession). This is the kind of book that you want to share with everyone you know. Magical, funny, touching, exciting, sad, and hopeful. I would recommend this book to any fan of fantasy, grades 5-8.

A playful and fun fantasy

Yorsh is a young elf on his own in the world. The elf village that he lived in was destroyed in a flood caused by the continual rain, and now Yorsh, who is a very young child, has no one to help him. Elves are hated and feared by humans, but when Yorsh meets a human woman who is in equally desperate circumstances, she takes pity on him and helps him out. Later, they meet a human hunter who also joins the group. Hilarious misunderstandings ensue, as elves and humans think very differently. In one such episode, Yorsh, who is horrified at the thought of eating anything that thinks, brings the hunter's meal, a rabbit, back to life, much to the hunter's regret. As time goes on, Yorsh and the humans grow to understand and care for each other. When Yorsh discovers a prophecy involving the last elf and the last dragon, he begins to realize that his future may have some surprises in store. This book caught me quite by surprise. When I read the description, I thought, "Elves..dragons..prophecy..yeah, yeah, seen it before." But really, The Last Dragon turned out to be quite different than what I expected. It's playful and funny, yet touching and poignant. de Mari is obviously smart, witty, and creative, and it shows in every word of this book. The initial misunderstanding between the elf and the humans is funny, but it could have easily turned into a one trick pony that would have eventually become tiresome. But de Mari is smart enough to not try to sustain it for the entire book. Instead, like a composer writing a symphony, she has created variations on the themes of perception and point of view throughout the book. As Yorsh grows, so does his understanding of the world and the other species around him. Yet even as an adult, he retails a certain quality of childlike innocence that is very appealing. I also like the way de Mari makes clever use of repetition of certain seemingly unimportant elements to create connections between the different parts of the story. Sensitive kids should be forewarned that there are a couple of sad parts in the book, but it's not overly scary.