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The Ruins of Gorlan

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Template:Infobox Ranger's Apprentice book

The Ruins of Gorlan is the first novel in the Ranger's Apprentice series written by Australian author John Flanagan. It was first published in Australia on 1 November 2004 and in the United States on 16 June 2005.John Flanagan says that he first wrote the series as short stories for his son to get him interested in reading. Ten years later, John Flanagan decided to turn them into the first book, The Ruins of Gorlan. However, he never knew that the one book would be able to turn into so many books. He still does not know how many books there will be in total. .[1]

Concept and development

The Ruins of Gorlan was originally a set of short stories written by Flanagan for his son Michael to encourage him to read. Flanagan wrote one story a week for twenty weeks until he stopped. About ten years later, Flanagan found the stories he wrote and decided to write into a full length novel.[2] Horace was based off of Michael's friend Jeremy, but in the original short stories Flanagan made Horace the villain. In the stories, Horace disappears and fades away after Will saves his life on the boar hunt. However, in the novel, Flanagan was able to make Morgarath the main villain and "rehabilitate" Horace and keep him as a main character. Flanagan thought that the idea of a bullied being bully was a strong concept which was not in the original stories and was later incorporated into the novel. He planned this parallel storyline in Battleschool to develop and show how Horace could help Will though his "linear thinking". Flanagan was cautious to mark Horace off as stupid since he was in fact a straight thinker which helps balance Will's wild thinking.[3] Will was based off of Michael who are both short, agile and fast. Most importantly, Flanagan wanted to show his son that there was an advantage to being small and that not all heros have to be tall and muscular.[2]

Plot summary

Morgarath, the exiled lord of the bleak, barren Mountains of Rain and Night, has been waiting for fifteen years in his dark realm, carefully planning his revenge against the Kingdom of Araluen. His former fief, known as Gorlan, was long since brought to ruin, ever since his unsuccessful rebellion against King Duncan. Now, as the years passed, he silently plotts to rebel again, rallying creatures known as Wargals to his side. Wargals have little will of their own, and were easy to control, therefore being suitable as soldiers in Morgarath’s army. Now, after the fifteen years, Morgarath prepares to unleash his power and attempt to take the Kingdom once more.

In Araluen, in the fief Redmont, a special day has for Will, called Choosing Day where he becomes an apprentice to a craftmaster. Although Will's first choice was Battleschool, he becomes apprenticed to Halt the Rangers. Rangers are the intelligence group of the country and specialize in long range weapons and the art of staying unseen. Will is trained in these skills as he prepares for the annual Ranger meeting called the Gathering where his skills will be tested. At the Gathering, the Rangers receive a report that the Kalkara, vicious creatures under the control of Morgarath were killing important Araluen figures. The only weapons that can injure them are heavy axes and swords carried by knights and fire.

Halt leaves to track down the Kalkara while Will rides for help. The Baron, Sir Rodney, and several others head out to slay the Kalkara. Finding where Halt is battling the Kalkara, Sir Rodney and the Baron manage to slay one, but are badly injured. Suddenly the last Kalkara appears and is killed by Will with a flaming arrow, right before the Kalkara is about the kill everyone else. Back at his fief, Will is considered a hero and receives his bronze oakleaf medal which identifies him as a ranger's apprentice.

Audiobook adaption

An audiobook adaption of The Ruins of Gorlan has been released by Recorded Library and contains seven CDs lasting 8 hours.[4] Will is read by narrator John Keating whose performance was praised by Kristi Elle Jemtegaard from Horn Book Magazine. Jemtegaard found that "Keating's voice rings wit herioc valor, drops to a whisper, and then charges full-steam into a battle. This well-paced, exciting adventure will leave listeners eager for the next installment.[4] Keating's performance was also praised by Lolly Gepson from Booklist. Gepson liked how Keating gave suiting voices to characters, a rapsing voice to Morgorath, Hibernian accent to Halt and a high class voice to the king. Gepson noted how the Keating gives a Lord of the Rings atmosphere with his reading which would draw in listeners for the next volume.[5]

Awards

The Ruins of Gorlan won the Aurealis Award. Then, the book earned the Children's Book Council of Australia Notable Book. Also, the first book was nominated for the Grand Canyon Reader Award in 2008.

Movie

As of January 7, 2008, United Artists has optioned the film rights for The Ruins of Gorlan and is in talks with Paul Haggis to adapt and direct the movie.

References

  1. ^ Random House UK - John Flanagan, retrieved 31 December 2009
  2. ^ a b "We Interview: John Flanagan". Washington Post. 23 July 2006. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  3. ^ "Kidsread.com — John Flanagan Interview". Kidsread.com. June 2007. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  4. ^ a b Elle Jemtegaard, Kristi (November/December 2006). Horn Book Magazine. 82 (6). EBSCOhost: 740. ISSN 0018-5078. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ^ Gepson, Lolly (1 December 2006). Booklist. 103 (7). EBSCOhost: 70. ISSN 0006-7385. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

External links


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