- School & Library Binding: 248 pages
- Publisher: Turtleback Books: A Division of Sanval (Mar 1987)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0613829700
- ISBN-13: 978-0613829700
- Product Dimensions: 17.5 x 9.9 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,391,968 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
When Harry Crewe's father dies, she leaves her Homeland to travel east, to Istan, the last outpost of the Homelander empire, where her elder brother is stationed.
Harry is drawn to the bleak landscape of the northeast frontier, so unlike the green hills of her Homeland. The desert she stares across was once a part of the great kingdom of Damar, before the Homelanders came from over the seas. Harry wishes she might cross the sands and climb the dark mountains where no Homelander has ever set foot, where the last of the old Damarians, the Free Hillfolk, still live. She hears stories that the Free Hillfolk possess strange powers -- that they work magic -- that it is because of this that they remain free of the Homelander sway.
When the king of the Free Hillfolk comes to Istan to ask that the Homelanders and the Hillfolk set their enmity aside to fight a common foe, the Homelanders are reluctant to trust his word, and even more reluctant to believe his tales of the Northerners: that they are demonkind, not human.
Harry's destiny lies in the far mountains that she once wished to climb, and she will ride to the battle with the North in the Hill-king's army, bearing the Blue Sword, Gonturan, the chiefest treasure of the Hill-king's house and the subject of many legends of magic and mystery. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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First Sentence
SHE SCOWLED AT HER GLASS of orange juice. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
SHE SCOWLED AT HER GLASS of orange juice. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you want to get lost in someone else's world then this book is a must. I... was immediately drwn to the world of Damar and couldnt put it down till I finished it.The emotions and descriptions were powerful and addictive. Following the main character of 'Harry' on her journey from the familiar into a strange land with stranger people was both exciting and colourful. If you love this book be sure to read 'the hero and the crown', which is written with as much attention to detail to provoke the imagination as the first. The blue sword is to be read again and again with as much vigour as the first time you open the cover. A must for any lover of other worlds.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
While most bookshops categorise The Blue Sword as a story for younger readers, at the age of 19 I still love it. McKinley's stories have a lot to offer for older teenagers and young adults. This book has something to offer for those who, like me, have had a difficult childhood because they are 'different'. Though the story is a little superlative the point is that the heroine fights her way to finding herself and achieving what she wants. I first read this book years ago, while I was in school - it was and remains, a favourite in the genre.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:School & Library Binding
While an excellent book, "The Blue Sword" does not meet the same standards as "The Hero and the Crown".
A few hundred years after Aerin enters the land of legend another woman finds her life changed by Damar. Harry, an Outlander, is kidnapped by Damar's king Corlath. Why he has been compelled to this illogical act by his kelar (magic) is not apparent to Corlath. Of course, Harry soon discovers that she has unknown talents and an unexpected affinity to the land of her kidnapper.
There is certainly action and character development in this book. At the same time "The Blue Sword" seems to fit its categorization as a young adult's book better than "The Hero and the Crown". "The Blue Sword" is an enjoyable read.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Superb Read
I purchased this book from my local second Emmaus yesterday and couldn't put it down. I have read an other book by Robin McKinley, Spindle's End. and enjoyed it just as much. Read more
Published on 18 Aug 2006 by F. Tewson
Really Glad I found this Book
The Blue Sword. I First read this book when I was 14 and really enjoyed it. I am absolutely thrilled to have found it on your web site ten years later and shall be purchasing a... Read more
Published on 21 Mar 2006
The Blue Sword
While an excellent book, "The Blue Sword" does not meet the same standards as "The Hero and the Crown". Read more
Published on 9 Mar 2005 by bookaholic
The Blue Sword
While an excellent book, "The Blue Sword" does not meet the same standards as "The Hero and the Crown". Read more
Published on 9 Mar 2005 by bookaholic
TOTALLY SPECIAL
DUDE I AM ONLY 11 BUT I HAVE BEEN READING THE BLUE SWORD SINCE I WAS 7. THIS BOOK IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ. Read more
Published on 26 May 2004 by evlhippo7_28_92
Vague and far-fetched
This is a typical case of good against evil fantasy story, set in a land called Daria -which reminds me of India- colonized by a country called Homeland -which inevitably makes me... Read more
Published on 21 Feb 2004 by ex nihilo
It's one of the best books I've read I read it over & over
It's about a girl that anygirl could be, who after going to live with her brothers comanding officer and his wife gets kiddnapped by the king of a strange group of people who live... Read more
Published on 8 Mar 2001 by Brigit Peppe
I read it so much it fell apart!
I love this book, I can't remember the 1st time I read it, but I was hooked. I love the descriptions, the characters, the land. Read more
Published on 8 July 2000
One of my all time favourites
I can't remember how many years it is since I first read this, but I've reread it over and over through the years. Read more
Published on 10 Feb 2000
Great Book!
I really like Robin McKinley's books. She is indeed an awesomeauthor and I love her books. In the 8th Grade, my English teacher let us choose a book of R. Read more
Published on 23 Aug 1999
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