Enna Burning - Book Review

Two years ago, a dear friend and I decided to form a book club in our neighborhood. We both loved reading books and we loved talking about books. We knew there were at least a few other women who also loved books (other than Twilight) and so we invited them to meet at my house on the first Wednesday of November 2008. We talked about the book, our children, our husbands, and everything else. We ate delicious treats and realized that we had been sitting around my kitchen table for hours. It was already eleven pm.

Before long the book club expanded to include many more members (basically anyone who wants to come is welcome and you really don't have to read the book although it is encouraged), we began to meet regularly at my friend's home and our visits stretched later and later into the wee hours of the morning (much to Utah Dad's chagrin). We've read great books, mediocre books and some that we loathed. We've read books that I wouldn't necessarily have chosen for myself but have been ultimately grateful for the introduction. Sometimes we actually talk about the books. Mostly we talk about the things that really matter to us and I love that I've had this chance to make close friendships with some very amazing and unique women. 

This past month we've been reading Enna Burning by Shannon Hale. We read Goose Girl as our second book two years ago and most of us enjoyed it. I did. I thought it was a fun representation of the original Goose Girl fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. Hale creates an imaginative world of Bayern where Isi, the heroine, has the gift/ability to speak with the wind and the birds. As it is written and intended for a young audience, I also appreciated that it was free of offensive material.

Enna Burning is equally as clean and is a creative and inventive story of Isi's friend Enna who learns how to speak to fire. The land of Bayern is now at war and Enna believes that her new skills can help save her homeland. Enna has a mighty adventure as she learns how to control the fire and not let it control her. The writing is simple but that is appropriate for the audience and I believe that my Amberly will enjoy this series in a few years.