Author: David Eddings
Themes: Parent/child relationships
Quotes: "When you get right down to it nothing, at least not much, is impossible."
Reading/Listening Time: 10 hours, 27 minutes
Review:
I felt like this book conveyed a lot more of the frustration and insecurity of adolescence than any "YA" book I've every read. Reading it made me realize how much of young adult literature published today, even the books I really like, is really cliche and not very realistic.
Now, I realize that a big part of the YA genre is wish fulfillment: As a teenager you might long for the comfort and protection of childhood, but you also want to believe that you'd be competent if you were thrown out into the world on your own. That's why there are so many books about orphans, and love triangles, and suddenly becoming competent and popular within your peer group.
This book, though, takes a completely different approach to exploring the the struggles of adolescence. The main character (Garion) is technically an orphan, but the story reads more like he's a child to a single parent. His very protective "Aunt" has raised him from birth, and throughout the story he takes a comparatively passive role in her adventure.
(He's just along for the ride because she's afraid he'll get somebody pregnant if he's left alone.) And the aunt is too preoccupied with her adventure to do a whole lot of nurturing or guiding her kid, even though he's so obviously desperate for parental guidance.
Like, he knows he hasn't got life all figured out yet; but she's not emotionally available to do much more than tell him to go to his room whenever he asks a question she doesn't want to answer.
The story focuses a lot on Garion's vulnerability, which is why I don't think he would be very popular among the YA Fantasy readers of today, but thinking back to my own adolescence I think I readily identified with a lot of the emotions this kid goes through in this book (and I wasn't even brought up in a single parent household!)
It's interesting to me that even at the end Garion's Aunt still doesn't completely level with him, and he has to find other people in his life to help fulfill that need for nurturing and belonging.
I don't really think, either, that this necessarily makes Aunt Pol a horrible person. One of the biggest parts of growing up is realizing your parents have limitations and they're not always going to be able to fulfill your needs, even your need for growth. Garion realizes this, and it actually kind of re-affirms their relationship in a strange way: she doesn't exactly become a better parent, but he realizes he doesn't need her to be. His entire existence doesn't have to hinge on her any more.
Rating: The whole journey was pretty subtle, but somehow also really gratifying. I originally rated it 3/5 stars but looking back on it...and how easy it was to listen to, and all the supporting characters I really liked...I think it deserves 4/5 Stars.
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