By Briana K., Meade Senior High School
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor was an absolute delight to read! This young adult fantasy novel follows the “hero’s journey” of Lazlo Strange, a war orphan. This unsuspecting young librarian has to tackle the trials of social hierarchy before he is able to prove his worth. Strange has always been mystified and enamored by the lost city of Weep, and spent the majority of his early life learning all he could about its people and culture. His specialized knowledge will be of high value when a sudden visit from Godslayer -a war hero- and his warriors come looking for help to save their world. At the last moment Godslayer agrees to take this strange young man, and a few others, back to his unreachable city where he slowly reveals a deadly plan to purge Weep of an unknown enemy.
The character Strange was very easy to love and he provided an interesting narrative that made me question life, also adding soft humor. I was able to watch Strange and other characters grow throughout the novel as they approach life changing events. Taylor provides a “good-feel” book while also conveying the compelling history of the city of Weep and demonstrating morally-conflicted characters that will divide your heart in two. The two perspectives of Strange and a dazzling blue-skinned goddess, reveal that maybe your heroes aren’t always inherently good or your villains inherently bad.
The climatic ending of this novel had me rushing to pick up the sequel!
Click here to check out Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.