Author | Tamora Pierce |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Series | The Circle Opens |
Genre | Fantasy novel |
Publisher | Scholastic Press |
Publication date | March 1, 2000 |
Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
Pages | 272 pp |
ISBN | 0-590-39588-2 (hardback edition) & ISBN 0-590-39605-6 (paperback edition) |
OCLC | 41468528 |
LC Class | PZ7.P61464 Mag 2000 |
Followed by | Street Magic |
Magic Steps is the opening book of The Circle Opens quartet of young adult fantasy novels by Tamora Pierce. It is preceded by the Circle of Magic quartet, taking place four years after the conclusion of Briar's Book . It portrays the adventures of Sandrilene fa Toren, the noble thread mage and her first experience as a teacher of magic.
Like the previous quartet, Magic Steps is set in Summersea, the capital of Emelan. When her three foster-siblings leave Summersea to travel the world with their teachers, Sandry and Lark, remain alone in a Temple. Sandry leaves Discipline Cottage to live with and care for him.
While out riding with her uncle, Sandry makes two discoveries: the murder of Rokat part of the war between organized crime families Rokat and Dihanur, and a boy named Pasco, whose dancing is visible to Sandry's magical vision as imbued with ambient magic.
The book was first published in 2000, one year after Briar's Book concluded the original Circle of Magic quartet in 1999. A review by Janice M. Del Negro for the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books says the book "serves more as set-up than as a well-developed story of its own" and "The characterizations are less richly layered, relying on the previous series to fill in the blanks". [1]
Kirkus Reviews praised the book's "vibrant language" and "great energy." [2] A review by Ann St. John for Horn Book Magazine notes the "grisly descriptions of the crime scenes and the ongoing murders are shocking" and states "Rather than being weighed down by the dark story line, however, the fantasy emphasizes Sandry's strength of character in the face of danger and focuses on her attempts to find a solution." [3] In a review for School Library Journal , Eva Mitnick observes, "the admirable heroine remains calm, capable, and always ready to giggle" and states, "Violent acts are horrifying but are not graphically described." [4]
It was adapted into an audiobook in 2011 by Full Cast Audio. [5] A review of the audio version by Sarah Flood for School Library Journal states, "Sandry and Pasco are likeable and strong-willed characters, and the full-cast narration captures their spunk and humorous interactions with Pierce taking the role of narrator." [6]
Shatterglass, a novel by Tamora Pierce, is the fourth book in The Circle Opens series. It takes place four years after the Circle of Magic series.
Circle of Magic is a quartet of fantasy novels by Tamora Pierce, set in Emelan, a fictional realm in a pseudo-medieval and renaissance era. It revolves around four young mages, each specializing in a different kind of magic, as they learn to control their extraordinary and strong powers and put them to use. It is followed by another quartet, The Circle Opens, which takes place four years later, and the standalone book The Will of the Empress, which takes place several years after that. Melting Stones and Battle Magic are also set in the same universe, but they feature only Briar.
Miracles on Maple Hill is a 1956 novel by Virginia Sorensen that won the 1957 Newbery Medal for excellence in American children's literature. The book was illustrated by Beth and Joe Krush.
Wild Magic is a fantasy novel by Tamora Pierce, the first in a series of four books, The Immortals. It details the emergence of the powers of Veralidaine Sarrasri as a wild mage and her coming to Tortall.
Sandry's Book, by Tamora Pierce is a fantasy novel set mainly in Emelan. It is the first in a quartet of books: The Circle of Magic, starring four young mages as they discover their magic.
Tris's Book, a fantasy novel by Tamora Pierce, tells the story of four young mages as they battle pirates and become closer than ever.
The Circle Opens is a quartet of novels written by Tamora Pierce and set in a pseudo-medieval/renaissance era. It mainly revolves around four teenage mages, each specializing in a different kind of magic, as they find that they are forced to deal with mages whose powers are similarly unusual to their own. The series consists of the books Magic Steps (2000), Street Magic (2001), Cold Fire (2002), and Shatterglass (2003). The Circle Opens Quartet is the sequel quartet to The Circle Of Magic Quartet, and is followed by "Battle Magic" and The Will of the Empress.
The Lightning Thief is a 2005 American fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology, the first young adult novel by Rick Riordan. The opening installment in the series Percy Jackson & the Olympians, the book was recognized among the year's best for young adults. Riordan followed the novel with various books and spin-off series, spawning the Camp Half-Blood Chronicles media franchise.
The Will of the Empress, previously titled The Circle Reforged, is a standalone fantasy novel by Tamora Pierce, a continuation of the story of the quartets Circle of Magic and The Circle Opens.
Briar's Book by Tamora Pierce, is a fantasy novel set in the fictional duchy of Emelan. It is the fourth and final book in the Circle of Magic quartet, starring the four young mages Sandry, Tris, Daja and Briar as they learn to handle powerful magic, form intense bonds of friendship and stand up against destructive forces of nature.
Street Magic is the second book in the quartet The Circle Opens by fantasy author Tamora Pierce. It describes the further adventures of child-mage Briar Moss in his travels with his teacher, the Dedicate Initiate Rosethorn.
Melting Stones, a fantasy novel by young adult author Tamora Pierce, was released by Full Cast Audio as an audiobook original in October 2007, and was released in print form by Scholastic in the summer of 2008.
Flotsam is a children's wordless picture book written and illustrated by David Wiesner. Published by Clarion/Houghton Mifflin in 2006, it was the 2007 winner of the Caldecott Medal; the third win for David Wiesner. The book contains illustrations of underwater life with no text to accompany them.
A Good House is the first novel by Canadian writer Bonnie Burnard, published by Picador in 1999 and later by Henry Holt and Company in United States of America. It was the winner of that year's Scotiabank Giller Prize. The novel narrates the story of a family in three generations, five houses starting from 1949 until 1997.
Michael Bedard is a Canadian children's writer. He was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He graduated from the University of Toronto in 1971 with a BA in philosophy and English. He began writing when his former high school teacher showed him works of Emily Dickinson and T. S. Eliot. Bedard currently lives in Toronto with his wife Martha. He has four children and six grandchildren.
Toad Rage is a children's novel by Australian author Morris Gleitzman. It was first published in Australia in 1999 by Puffin Books.
This is a list of works by American fantasy author Tamora Pierce.
Luster is a 2020 debut novel by Raven Leilani. It follows a young Black woman who gets involved with a middle-aged white man in an open marriage. Luster was released on August 4, 2020 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. It received mainly positive critical reception and won the 2020 Kirkus Prize for fiction. In December 2020, the novel was found in Literary Hub to have made 16 lists of the year's best books.
Traci Chee is an American author of young adult fiction, best known for the Sea of Ink and Gold trilogy and We Are Not Free. Chee is fourth-generation Japanese American and resides in California where she grew up.