The Coming of the Dragon

( 15 )
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up in Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Paperback
$6.99
BN.com price
Marketplace (New and Used)
from
$2.99
$6.99 List Price (Save 57%)
Usually ships in 1-2 business days
All (30)  
Used (9)  
New (21)  
Close
Sort by
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 30 (3 pages)
$2.99
(Save 57%)
RightChoiceBooks!
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(1774)

Condition:

New — never opened or used in original packaging.

Like New — packaging may have been opened. A "Like New" item is suitable to give as a gift.

Very Good — may have minor signs of wear on packaging but item works perfectly and has no damage.

Good — item is in good condition but packaging may have signs of shelf wear/aging or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Acceptable — item is in working order but may show signs of wear such as scratches or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Used — An item that has been opened and may show signs of wear. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Refurbished — A used item that has been renewed or updated and verified to be in proper working condition. Not necessarily completed by the original manufacturer.

Like New
0375861734 UNUSED COPY!!! MAY CONTAIN LIGHT SHOPWARE, IF ANY. SHIPS IMMEDIATELY!! HRD CPY

Ships from: Plainview, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$2.99
(Save 57%)
RightChoiceBooks!
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(1774)

Condition: New
0375861734 UNUSED COPY!!! MAY CONTAIN LIGHT SHOPWARE, IF ANY. SHIPS IMMEDIATELY!! HRD CPY

Ships from: Plainview, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$3.00
(Save 57%)
whypaymorebooks? NY
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(1450)

Condition: Like New
10/11/2011 Paperback Reprint Fine 0375861734 UNUSED COPY! ! ! MAY CONTAIN LIGHT SHOPWARE, IF ANY. SHIPS IMMEDIATELY! ! HRD CPY.

Ships from: Lindenhurst, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$3.00
(Save 57%)
whypaymorebooks? NY
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(1450)

Condition: New
10/11/2011 Paperback Reprint New 0375861734 UNUSED COPY! ! ! MAY CONTAIN LIGHT SHOPWARE, IF ANY. SHIPS IMMEDIATELY! ! HRD CPY.

Ships from: Lindenhurst, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$3.74
(Save 46%)
PaperbackshopUS
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(4796)

Condition: New
Shipped from US in 4 to 14 business days. Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$3.75
(Save 46%)
ExpeditedBooksUS
Seller since 2010

Feedback rating:

(889)

Condition: New
Shipped from US. Express shipping in 3 to 6 business days. Standard shipping in 4 to 14 business days. Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$3.75
(Save 46%)
PaperbackshopUS
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(4796)

Condition: New
Shipped from US in 4 to 14 business days. Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$3.94
(Save 44%)
TrackedBooksUS
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(88)

Condition: New
Shipped from US in 4 to 14 business days standard or 3 to 6 business days express. FREE TRACKING WITH EVERY ORDER! Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$3.98
(Save 43%)
PaperbackshopUS
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(4796)

Condition: New
Shipped from US in 4 to 14 business days. Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$4.11
(Save 41%)
SuperBookDeals-
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(14111)

Condition: New
Brand New, Perfect Condition, Please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. 100% Money Back Guarantee, Over 1,000,000 customers served.

Ships from: South Bend, IN

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 30 (3 pages)
Close
Sort by
NOOK Book (eBook)
$6.99
BN.com price

Available on NOOK devices and apps

  • Nook Devices
  • NOOK
  • NOOK Color
  • NOOK Tablet
  • Tablet/Phone
  • NOOK for iPad
  • NOOK for iPhone
  • NOOK for Android
  • NOOK for Android (Tablet)
  • NOOK Kids for iPad
  • PC/Mac
  • NOOK Study
  • NOOK for PC
  • NOOK for Mac

Want a NOOK? Explore Now

Note: Visit our Teens Store.

More About This Book

Overview

Rebecca Barnhouse weaves Norse gods, blood feuds, and a terrifying dragon into this spectacular historical fantasy, a retelling of the end of the Old English poem Beowulf.

When he was a baby, Rune washed up onshore in a boat, along with a sword and a pendant bearing the runes that gave him his nickname. Some people thought he was a sacrifice to the gods and wanted to send him right back to the sea. Luckily for Rune, King Beowulf disagreed. He lifted the boy from the boat and gave him to Amma, a wise woman living on a farm far removed from the king's hall, to raise as she saw fit. Sixteen years later, Rune spends his summers laboring on the farm. And at King Beowulf's request, he comes to the hall each winter for weapons training. But somehow he never quite fits in. Many people still fear he will bring a curse on the kingdom. Then a terrible thing happens. On a lonely crag on a mountain that belongs to the giants, someone awakens a dragon. It is time for Rune to find the warrior inside himself and prove to the doubters once and for all that he is a true hero. For Fans of Christopher Paolini, Tamora Pierce, and all coming-of-age fantasy.

Editorial Reviews

Children's Literature
Barnhouse, an Old English and Norse scholar, takes a creditable stab at continuing the Beowulf saga during the hero's old age as king of the Geats. The story is told by Rune, the foundling who was rescued and raised as a farmer by the wise woman Amma. Rune has prickly relationships with most of the superstitious Viking community who see him as a curse-bringer. By the age of sixteen—when the main story opens—these attitudes have left Rune a shy, defensive, whipped-dog sort of outcast. That's when The Dragon wakes-and Rune is present to cower in fear as the beast gives him a scorching nod before proceeding to torch the kingdom. Attempting to prove himself, Rune is always just a little too late: too late with his dragon warning to King Beowulf (whose Great Hall is already sizzling); too late to warn his farm family (Amma, their householder and sons are already burnt to crisps.) And always on the horizon is his nemesis, Dayraven, trying to murder Rune's reputation, then Rune himself. With King Beowulf as his only defender, Rune must learn to grow within his constraints to find his place in this harshly male Viking world. How he outwits both Dayraven and the Dragon becomes a tale of truth telling and courage. Add the sword-fighting and head-lopping action and Barnhouse's novel makes a good reluctant reader choice for middle school boys. Reviewer: Kathleen Karr
Kirkus Reviews

Shaping her novel around the last part of Beowulf, Barnhouse ponders the question of good leadership in a violent age. When the infant Rune washes up on the shores of Geatland, many see him as cursed, but the aging King Beowulf spares him and places him in the care of Amma, a wisewoman, who raises him with the ancient lays. When the dragon of the poem lays waste to the countryside and kills many, including Amma and much of the guard that are not off defending against the ever-threatening Shylfings, the now-teenage Rune seeks to prove himself and avenge Amma. In a gutsy move, the author locates the climactic battle with the dragon in the center of the novel, forcing Rune and the Geats to cope with life in a post-Beowulf world and imagine new paths to prosperity. Much of this part of the narrative and the characterization seem more informed by 21st-century sensibilities than ancient Scandinavian ones, but within the framework of the likable Rune's coming of age it works, providing readers with much food for thought—and some hope. (author's note, pronunciation guide) (Fiction. 10-14)

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780375861734
  • Publisher: Random House Children's Books
  • Publication date: 10/11/2011
  • Pages: 336
  • Sales rank: 215,259
  • Age range: 8 - 12 Years
  • Lexile: 0840L (what's this?)
  • Product dimensions: 7.62 (w) x 5.22 (h) x 0.80 (d)

Meet the Author

REBECCA BARNHOUSE is the author of The Book of the Maidservant. She first read Beowulf in Old English at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned her doctorate, studying Anglo-Saxon manuscripts and medieval literature written in Old and Middle English, Old Norse, and other fascinating languages. She teaches and writes about medieval topics and about children's literature set in the middle ages.

Read an Excerpt

From the corner of his eye, Rune saw the scythe blade swing down. As he watched, horrified, it cut into Hwala's calf. Everything happened at once: Hwala yelled; Skoll turned, puzzled by the sound; and Skyn's mouth dropped open as he realized what he'd done. Then came the blood.  

"Father!" Skoll cried, catching Hwala as he stumbled.  

Skyn's scythe dropped to the ground.  

Rune rushed forward to kneel beside his foster father.  

From between clenched teeth, Hwala grunted, "Get Amma."  

Almost before the words had been uttered, Rune was running, racing toward the farmhouse and the hut beyond it that he shared with Amma. Gods, let her be there, he prayed, his arms pumping as he skirted a boulder and pelted through the homefield, not taking the time to go around it. "Lady of the Vanir, I beg of you," he whispered as he burst through the hay. He skidded to a stop, but not fast enough to keep him from colliding with Amma.  

"Sorry," he said, panting as he steadied her. "Hwala's hurt."  

"I know. Where is he?"  

In his sixteen winters, Rune had learned not to question how Amma knew the things she did. "The west field," he said.  

She picked up the basket he'd knocked from her hand. "I'll need water."  

Rune nodded and took off for the hut. When he caught up with her again, she was only halfway there. He took her basket in one hand, her arm in the other. The image of the blade hitting Hwala's leg, the blood welling around the wound, made him want to pullher into a run, but she was already moving as quickly as her age would allow.  

How had it happened? They had come to the end of one row when Hwala had turned. Had he walked directly into the path of his son's blade? How had Skyn not seen him?  

After what seemed an eternity, they reached the edge of the field. Across the stubble and the shocks of grain, Rune could see the curve of Skoll's shoulders as he bent over his father, who lay on the ground, fallen stalks of grain around him. Skyn stood a little distance away, his face gray, the fist of his shorter arm beating into the open hand of his longer one, over and over again, as if he wasn't aware he was doing so.  

Rune helped Amma to sit on the ground beside Hwala. She shooed Skoll back and reached out to probe the wound with her fingers.  

"Water," she said, and Rune crouched beside her, handing her the waterskin.  

"Get away from him. I'll do it." Skoll's voice was as icy as his eyes.  

Rune opened his mouth, then closed it and handed his foster brother the water. It sloshed and gurgled inside the leather bag.   Skoll gave him a look that made his meaning clear. Rune rose and backed away.  

"I need goat wort," Amma said, and Skoll rifled uncertainly through the basket until she snapped, "Give me the whole thing." With one hand on Hwala's leg, she reached for a leather pouch and opened it with her teeth.  

Rune clenched his fist. He would have had the bag of goat wort open by now and the leaves crushed between his fingers. Instead, Amma had to do it all herself, taking precious time. He turned his head so he didn't have to see the pain etched into Hwala's face.  

Finally, as she finished tying a bandage tightly around the wound, Amma spoke to Hwala for the first time. "If it doesn't fester, you won't die."  

He nodded wordlessly.  

"How will we know if it festers?" Skoll asked.  

"You'll know." She gathered her pouches and jars and placed them back in her basket. "You two." She gestured toward Skyn and Skoll. "Take your father home. Don't let him put any weight on it." Then she turned back to Hwala. "Bed for a few days at least. I'll come in the morning." 

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 3.5
( 15 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(5)

4 Star

(4)

3 Star

(4)

2 Star

(1)

1 Star

(1)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identiy on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

We're sorry, but penname is already taken.

Please select one of the following:
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

penname is available!

By visiting the BN.com website or marking a purchase on BN.com, a User is deemed to have accepted the Terms of Use.

Continue Anonymously

Welcome, penname

You have successfully created your Pen Name. Start enjoying the benefits of the BN.com Community today.

Sort by: Showing all of 16 Customer Reviews

  • Posted March 28, 2011

    awesome

    you might not like it. if you think the king arthur stuff is cool buy it

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 25, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 31, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 29, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 26, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 4, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 4, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted September 13, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 20, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 22, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 21, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 1, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 31, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 25, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 16 Customer Reviews
If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
Why is this product inappropriate?
Comments (optional)
500 character limit