Book Review: Firestar's Quest

Firestar's Quest
Warriors Super Edition
by Erin Hunter

Several months have passed since the battle with BloodClan, and life in ThunderClan is settling back to normal. But then Firestar begins having visions of a strange gray cat with white patches, and of a group of terrified, fleeing cats. What does it mean? Then Firestar learns that there used to be a fifth clan, a clan that was driven out of the forest by the other clans, apparently with the consent of StarClan. Did StarClan lie when it said that there have always been four clans in the forest? Accompanied by Sandstorm, Firestar sets out on a quest to find and restore the lost clan. But can anything restore Firestar's faith in StarClan?

A standalone book set between the first and second Warriors series, Firestar's Quest is probably the best Warriors book so far. The quest format drives the story along, while the themes of faith and responsibility give it depth. It's quite satisfying watching Firestar and Sandstorm assemble a ragtag group of cats into a true clan. The fact that it's a story that's been done before—for example, in sports movies from The Bad News Bears to Major League—doesn't reduce its power as a story, and it's very well done here. It's also satisfying to finally see Firestar work out his relationship with Sandstorm, and work through his conflicted feelings about Spottedleaf. We were cheated on seeing that bit of his life, since The New Prophecy books start with the relationship pretty settled and Firestar a family man.

Firestar's Quest is a must read for fans of the series; longtime fans will especially appreciate the return to Firestar's point of view. Those new to the series should find that this book stands fairly well alone, although some time will be needed to acclimate to the Warriors culture and terminology.

By the way, it's hard to tell from the cover image, but the cover isn't yellow, it's a beautiful gold foil.

New Edge of the Forest!

A new issue of The Edge of the Forest online children's literature journal is up! Click here to read all the great content, including:

• My article about the Warriors series. I've been fortunate enough to be a part of this phenomenon, through hosting several Erin Hunter chats and through my interaction with the fans on my message boards. And yes, I've read all twelve books so far!
  
• An interesting article from Gary Elliott of Lifelongreader about using Mortal Engines as a novel study in teaching English at the International School in Dubai, UAE. The class even created a web site about the book.
  
• An article about the The Cybils, by Kelly Herold (Big A little a), Allie (Bildungsroman) and Anne Boles Levy (Book Buds).
  
• An interview with Carrie Jones, author of Tips on Having a Gay (ex)Boyfriend, conducted by Kelly Fineman. It's a great interview, and Carrie Jones is fascinating and funny. This is totally not the kind of book I would ever read (I'm not fond of teen books about high school) but by the time I finished the interview, I really wanted to read the book!)
  
• The Sounds From the Forest podcast interviews Rachna Gilmore, author of A Screaming Kind of Day and Lights for Gita.
  
• Pam Coughlan, aka MotherReader, interviews Grace Lin.
  
• Kim Winters, Kat's Eye Journal for Writers, interviews children's author Lauren Myracle.
  

All this and more, including great reviews, Best of the Blogs, Kids Picks, and In the Backpack, can be found here.