These are three more volumes in The Enchanted Forest Chronicles that Wrede
wrote in the late 80’s and early 90’s. I suspect the Harry Potter phenomenon
brought them back from dusty retirement as a way to fill up those tables at
the bookstore that have large signs saying “If You Liked Harry Potter,
You’ll Like These.” I’ve browsed some of those books and aside from magic or
the supernatural as a leitmotif, very little else is like Harry.

However, I’ve been on a young adult fiction kick lately and I did enjoy
these, so much so I actually stayed up late to finish one. They remind me
vaguely of a cleaned up, more innocent version of Terry Pratchett‘s Lancre
novels.

The books tell the story of Cimorene, the princess who’s run away from home
because princessing is too boring to be believed and has become the
voluntary captive of Kazul, the King of the Dragons. Kazul is female, by the
way, but King is a job description and not gender associated. There’s a
Queen who fulfills other functions.

In Searching for Dragons she meets Mendanbar, a reluctant King of the
Enchanted Forest, while on a quest to rescue Kazul from the Wizard’s Society
who are using Kazul to suck all the magic out of the Enchanted Forest into
their Wizard’s staffs. This is a bad thing. Unfortunately, Mendanbar’s magic
sword leaks magic, and while out of the Enchanted Forest
it stands out like a beacon on a hill for evil Wizards. Not to mention the
magic carpet that they borrow has transmission problems and keeps dropping
them all over the place.

In Calling for Dragons, Princess Cimorene has become Queen Cimorene and
she’s newly pregnant when someone, likely a wizard, threatens the Enchanted
Forest with destruction. Because the magic of the forest is tied directly to
King Mendanbar, he’s unable to do the heroic thing and go on the quest to
save the forest himself. Cimorene goes in his place, with the help of Morwen
the redheaded, pretty, and nearsighted witch, and Telemain the Sorcerer who
is really a magic geek speaking in magically scientific terms no one can
understand until someone translates for them. Sorcerers are different from
Wizards since they study all sorts of magic rather than specializing. And,
oh yes, the trio have help from a bunny who’s been enchanted to be 7 feet tall,
then eats magical donkey cabbage and turns into a donkey and then is further
enchanted to sprout wings and turn blue when he eats some specialized magic
ag products raised by Farmer McDonald who is diversifying his farm. The
bunny’s name is Killer. They return to a really frightful situation with a
war between the Wizards and the King. And the King is in trouble. Almost
best of all, in this one we get to hear what Morwen’s cat’s are really
saying when they meow.

Talking to Dragons breaks stride just a bit. The narrative switches to
focus on Cimorene’s son, Daystar, now 17 years old. One day, she hands him a
sword and sends him on a journey in the Enchanted Forest telling him nothing
except he will know what he’s suppose to do when it happens. And then he has
all sorts of adventures after meeting a fire-witch, a baby dragon and a
lizard named Suz.

One of my theories about young adult and children’s books is that the high
quality ones can be read by both adults and children with enjoyment. These
certainly follow that theory. I enjoyed them so much I told my daughter I
want them back for MY bookshelf when she’s done with them. Perhaps my son,
the Terry Pratchett aficionado, will read them as well.