Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #1-4)

4.44 of 5 stars 4.44 · rating details · 4,835 ratings · 289 reviews

Collected together for the first time are Patricia C. Wrede's hilarious adventure stories about Cimorene, the princess who refuses to be proper. Every one of Cimorene's adventures is included in its paperback edition--Dealing with Dragons, Searching for Dragons, Calling on Dragons, and Talking to Dragons--in one handsome package that's perfect for gift giving.

Hardcover, 617 pages

Published January 1st 2005 by Harcourt (first published 1990)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Add this book to your favorite list »

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Jun 17, 2009 Werner rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: All fans of humorous fantasy

Shelves: fantasy, books-barb-owns

This series is absolutely one of the fantasy genre's treasures! It's wonderfully light-hearted and humorous; the author revels in puncturing any number of fairy-tale conventions. Princess Cimorene, for instance, isn't kidnapped and enslaved by a dragon --she voluntarily becomes housekeeper for the Dragon King to escape an arranged marriage. (And the draconian king is female; dragons use that title for monarchs of either gender to keep things "simple.") But though her main characters often don't...more

like 8 likes · see review

Oct 10, 2008 Tortla rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: people who like fairy tales and witty little stories

Shelves: dragons, dragony-dragons, thesisability

Only just recently, it has come to my attention that the final book in this series was actually written FIRST. THIS BLEW MY MIND. The final book ties everything together so very neatly...Goodness gracious my perception of the world is crumbling around my widdle ears. OK so, these books are all really good aside from the whole my not being aware of the chronology of the publication and whatnot. They're all dragony and delicious. And also, it's like one giant fairy tale of awesome. Also, there are...more

like 4 likes · see review

Sep 14, 2011 Katie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-childhood, fantasy

Okay, time for a Nostalgia Review!

Recently somewhere on the depths of the internet I came across a list of "badass women of fantasy" or something like that, and Cimorene from this series was on there. And I was like, I remember her! She was awesome! And I was possessed by a sudden desire to reread these books because I hate doing things that I need to do. So that's what I did! Each book is only about 100 - 200 pages long, and it took me around 3 hours to read each one. Unsurprising, given the ta...more Okay, time for a Nostalgia Review!

Recently somewhere on the depths of the internet I came across a list of "badass women of fantasy" or something like that, and Cimorene from this series was on there. And I was like, I remember her! She was awesome! And I was possessed by a sudden desire to reread these books because I hate doing things that I need to do. So that's what I did! Each book is only about 100 - 200 pages long, and it took me around 3 hours to read each one. Unsurprising, given the target audience is like 7 - 11 year-olds, but still.

If you're not familiar with the plot, it goes like this:

Cimorene doesn't look like the typical princess. Instead of being a delicate flower with blonde hair and blues eyes, she is tall and strong with black eyes and long black hair that she likes to wear in braids. She doesn't have princess-approved interests, either: swordplay, cooking, Latin, politics, and magic, among others. When her parents decide to solve the problem by marrying her off to an air-headed prince, she decides to run away and ends up working for a dragon. The first book takes off from here, focusing on Cimorene with the dragons and their fight against some evil wizards. The following books really expand the world and focus a bit more on the nearby Enchanted Forest and its king, Mendanbar, who certainly has one of the greatest names in fantasy literature.

These books are utterly charming. They're basically fantasy/fairy-tale satire for children, which is a concept I can get behind 100 %. Looking back, I can understand quite easily how reading them (and I read each several times in my youth) influenced both my sense of humor and my opinions about fantasy. There is definitely an emphasis on practicality and doing things for yourself, which is quite nice. A funny thing about the first book is that Cimorene runs away to escape from oppressive female stereotypes, but she ends up spending all her time cooking and cleaning for a dragon. At first glance that may seem a bit backward, but does organizing the library count as anti-feminist when it includes translating Latin and dealing with murderous genies? I don't think so, and certainly the whole point is that Cimorene is capable of taking care of herself and thinking outside the paradigm of "what's proper," which for princesses does not include getting dirty or cooking. On that level, I think these books are especially great for young girls to read because Cimorene is a wonderful role model. She's smart, determined, practical, and a bit of a badass.

The second book is my favorite, and it introduces us to Mendanbar, who as I mentioned previous is fairly awesome. He's Cimorene's badass male counterpart, basically. In this book, the rules of magic are fleshed out much more, and Mendanbar in particular gets a very interesting way of doing things. Telemain, a magician, speaks almost entirely in magical technobabble, which I found moderately humorous. Most of what he says makes at least some sense if you read it, but I kind of doubt I did anything other than skim it when I was younger. Anyway, I appreciated the way magical things (more or less) made sense from kind of a psudeo-scientific standpoint.

As might be expected, the plots are not too complex. Chekov's Gun is in full force for most plot points, which is fine. The way the heroes stumble upon a critical plot device is lampshaded beautifully in the last book. The villains in particular are rather weak, being little other than cackling stereotype evil wizards who aren't given motivations for their actions other than "we're greedy and evil!" They're also mostly ineffectual and not very threatening. I wouldn't exactly call our heroes round characters either, because they're honestly not. They are, however, interesting ideas and they certainly grab your attention. In my opinion, that's one of the strengths of this series. It's the kind of story that grabs your imagination (it certainly did mine when I was little) and makes you feel like you know a lot more about the characters than is actually written down in the book. The concepts are so fun you wish there was more, that you could really get to know the characters better. The other strength, of course, is that it's quite funny in a gently whimsical manner. The self-awareness of the characters of what happens in a fairy tale is pretty much the whole point.

I definitely thought the first two books were the strongest, and the third the weakess, but I highly recommend this series, especially for young girls. (less)

like 1 like · see review

Oct 04, 2007 Michelle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So I was waiting for my latest book club's choice to arrive in the mail, and knowing that it was a serious choice this month, I decided to relive some young adult books that used to be great favorites of mine. I own a very ratty hardcover copy of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles, but recently purchased the newly released paperbacks in a box set. Perfect time to read them.

These vary in how much I like them. The first one I've read more than the rest, and do like a lot. It features a feisty prince...more

like 2 likes · see review

Jan 12, 2011 Dawn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I recently finished reading these books with my ten year old daughter. I read them years ago, so I didn't remember much plot, just that they are fun fantasy. And they are--light and witty, funny, creative, and strong female characters. I didn't like the last book as well. It didn't seem as well written and I missed Cimorene as a main character. But it was needed to finish the story. It was fun to enjoy the books together. We no longer have much of an oral tradition in our society, so it's easy t...more

like 3 likes · see review

Jan 17, 2008 Echo rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: youngadult, fantasy

This is some of the best young adult fantasy out there, especially if you like some humor in your fantasy. In the first book, the main character gets fed up with her life as a princess. When she tries to learn to fence, she's told it's unladylike, so she has to stop. When she tries to coook, she's told it's unladylike, so she has to stop. So, we begin the story with the main character running away to find a dragon to live with. She does find one, and she spends much of the book making cherries j...more

like 4 likes · see review

Jan 02, 2008 Laurie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fantasy lovers

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult

This is a series for people who like fantasy with a dash of humor and a strong female heroine who is perfectly willing to tell the slightly stupid handsome prince he can kindly throw himself off a cliff. Add some dragons, a few wicked wizard, one very forward thinking witch, a floating blue donkey with a 6-foot wing span, and an entire kindgom made of magical threads and you might begin to understand the stories. Wrede has a way of pulling in a few old fairy tale favorites while forging a story...more

like 4 likes · see review

Jan 21, 2013 Erica Robinson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a series I love a lot! I first read it when I was pretty young, so it is one of those series that is near and dear to my heart. It was one of those series that really helped cement my love of reading, so it will always be special to me. But not only that, this book is also really good! Cause let's face it, some books feed our book-lust when we are young and turn us into avid readers that weren't very good to begin with...they just happened to speak to us. This is not one of those books -...more

like · see review

Apr 09, 2012 Yomayra rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was my very first fantasy series of books I read back in middle school. I've always enjoyed reading, but I can say these books were my very first and introduced me to the science fiction/fantasy genre. I remember picking up these books at the school's library and was so engrossed with the story I couldn't put the book down during lecture. This was before Harry Potter of course :)

There are four books in the series:

1)Dealing with Dragons
2)Searching for Dragons
3)Calling on Dragons
4)Talking to...more

like · see review

Jun 22, 2011 Tara Montgomery rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved these books in grade school and I love them still. The author does a great job of making fun of what is considered a typical fairytale. Princesses take classes on how to scream correctly when a dragon carries them off & knights are constantly trying to find a damsel in distress to rescue (even if they don't wish to be).

Dealing with Dragons

Princess Cimorene of the kingdom of Linderwall decides that being a princess is too boring and confining, leaves home to work for the dragon Kazul,...more

like 1 like · see review

Sep 15, 2012 Julia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I rediscovered the first volume, Dealing with Dragons, which I really enjoyed when I was a kid, and after a short online search, found out it was part of a series and ordered the whole box off amazon.
After having read through the latter three books in one week now, I am ready to give my verdict.
At 23, I am probably a little too old for this, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the books and plan on reading them to my future children.
The wacky and whimsical wit paired with the believable characters,...more

like · see review

Feb 17, 2010 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If I were on a desert island with the choice of only one set of books to take with me for a summer I would take these. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles are some of the best young adult fantasy I have ever read. They are definitely the crown jewel of my childhood reading experience (ahem...my apologies to JK Rowling). But why am I reading them now you ask? Well after all of the Sterne, Marquis de Sade, Blake, Descartes and all manner of randomly dense reading required to be an English major--I NEE...more

like · see review

Dec 12, 2009 K. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fairy tale lovers

Shelves: fairy-tale-and-fantasy, kids-tween-age

THESE WERE FABULOUS!!!

Anyone who loves magical fairy tales and dragons to boot will love these great little books! Found them at the library, brought them home on a whim. 10yo son & 7yo daughter loved them as well.

Witty, original and well-written. I know I laughed at many parts myself, but I love hearing kids chuckling over books.

Favorite thing? No darkness. No evil. Sure there were bad guys, but they were greedy and mostly clumsy (and not in the forefront of the action all that much). I LO...more

like · see review

Aug 01, 2008 Chelsea rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I never read Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings, or the Chronicles of Narnia, I read The Enchanted Forest Chronicles. And to this day I haven't been able to figure out why these adventure stories aren't films already. Very fun.

like 2 likes · see review

Jun 01, 2008 Julia rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

i loved these books!!!!! you don't have to read the first one to understand the second or third or fourth one. they are hilarious books with a lot of magic in them. they aren't that serious, but that is what makes them fun to read!!!!!

like 1 like · see review

Feb 22, 2012 Sebastian rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fantasy

There is simply no way for me to completely explain my love for these books. I fell in love years ago with the rich characters, and the setting. Oh, the lovely setting. So vivid I wanted to take a nose dive into the spine of the book and jump right into the story. So vivid the imagery I could shove my nose into the pages and smell the scent of the forest, the sweat of the battles and the smoke of the dragons. I have not read many books of this caliber, so original, so totally engrossing that I w...more

like · see review

Feb 22, 2009 Inknose rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I can't even say how much I love this series. In a way they are I suppose a parody of fantasy/fairy tale clichés - at least, the original 'shtick' seemed to be the idea of Cimorene being this princess who would rather learn fencing than embroidery, and who turns away knights who try to save her from the dragon, etc. Sounds kind of tired and unoriginal, right? WRONG. Although the subverting of fairy tale clichés is definitely part of its charm, there is so much more to this series than that. I po...more

like · see review

Jan 25, 2011 Paige rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I honestly read this book so much that it fell apart...and then I kept reading the random peices. I loved this book so much as a child. I dont even remember how I came across this book when I was in the 4th grade...I actually had one book that held all of the stories in it. I just knew that it was huge and that I wanted to tackle it. Then when I actually began to read it I loved the main character, a princess who didnt want to be a princess. Being a girl who never related to the Disney Princesse...more

like · see review

Apr 12, 2011 Katie Paulson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This series is one of the best young adult fantasy novels, no matter how many years pass. Patricia C. Wrede wrote it a lot like Star Wars - the fourth book was actually written first, which makes the other all the more impressive. The last novel ties everything together, and it's incredible how she worked details into the other three that seemed meaningless until you read the last one. She effectively satirizes the fantasy genre while staying in it - various princess, dragon, and magic myths are...more

like · see review

Aug 15, 2012 Katherine Stapp rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read these books when I was younger also, and they were about as good as I remembered. They were pretty fun to read aloud, particularly Calling on Dragons because you have to do the voices for nine cats (with extreme personalities) and a giant rabbit that turns into an 8 foot bright blue floating donkey with oversized wings. The end of the series is a little too tidy for my liking, but I suppose that was to be expected.

like · see review

Feb 28, 2012 Rob K rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My wife had me read this series because it is one of her favorites. After reading them I have to agree. Kudos to authors who show the heroine as a strong and awesome characters! This is not a princess who sits in her tower and just waits for a strong man to come help her out. She goes off to live with the dragons to prove just how independent she is. Along the way she meets some pretty awesome characters and definitely proves how able she is. This is a perfect series for young girls (and boys if...more

like · see review

Jun 30, 2010 Amber Bettis rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This series is a childhood favorite of mine. I suppose I am a bit biased based on the fact that I have great memories from when my sister used to read the first 2 books aloud to me when we were children, but I've re-read them more recently along with books 3 and 4 and still find them extremely enjoyable. Great humor, great characters - full of fun and fantasy. These books are great for children and anyone with the dispostion to still get the full enjoyment of works clearly intended for children...more

like · see review

Oct 01, 2010 Veronica rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles was one of my first loves as a young reader, and definitely does not receive the kind of attention it should for its wonderful story and characters. It truly is a hidden treasure in the children's fantasy genre.

The series follow the witty, light-hearted adventures of Princess Cinmorene, an incredibly clever, fiesty and independent young princess, and her dragon, Kazul.

It definitely has a younger tone to it, comparable to that of the earlier Harry Potter books, mat...more

like · see review

Jul 13, 2010 Liz rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, fiction

My absolute favorite books from 4th-6th grade...reading Dealing with Dragons will probably tell you a lot about me. Smart, independent Princess Cimorene is bored of palace life, dreads her impending marriage to an idiot, and wishes her dad would just let her take fencing lessons. So she runs off and becomes the assistant of Kazul--a dragon. Adventures--involving evil wizards, sensible witches, defective magic carpets, stone princes, scruffy-haired magician kings, the always indispensable firepro...more

like · see review

Sep 13, 2007 Debbie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fantasy lovers

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult-lit

The four books in this witty, imaginative fantasy / adventure series follow the adventures of Cimorene, a princess who refuses to be proper.

In Dealing with Dragons, Princess Cimorene, a tomboy who is nothing like her beautiful and proper sisters, runs away to live with a dragon. It is hard for her to get any work done, however, because princes keep coming to rescue her, even though she insists that she does not need to be rescued. And then there are the annoying wizards trying to steal magic...

I...more

like · see review

Jul 20, 2007 Kitte rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone

Shelves: childrens, fantastic-futuristic, recommended

This series has all the characters you know and love from childhood fairytales, but it stands the stories on their heads, or rather it tells them from another perspective.

Take for instance Rumplestiltskin, who in her books is a kindly troll with a tender heart that is too soft to say no when he is begged to take the firstborn of the maidens he helps spin straw into gold and his subsequent trouble with trying to house, feed and cloth them all. He needs the gold to take care of his family. He can...more

like · see review

Apr 15, 2013 Krista Stevens rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, grades-3-5, middle-school, girls

Who wouldn't love an independent princess who decides she'd rather live with a dragon than suffer through embroidery and dance lessons. Cimorene happily cleans (can't decide if this bothers me, but then I like to clean) and bakes (again - but I also like to bake) for her dragon, fights off suitors who want to "rescue her" and helps her dragon battle wizards. The entire series follows Cimorene's story. Light, fast reading. Cimorene is sassy, smart, and very logical.

like · see review

Jan 09, 2010 C.G. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is one of my favourite fantasy series. I picked it out as a free selection for a book club and have reread it several times. I have given it to a young teenage girl and recommended it to others. Cimorene is who the Paper Bag Princess grew into and then some.

I would recommend it for any young girl, whether they're interested in fantasy or not. Young boys might enjoy it too - after all, it has dragons and swords and fighting and wizards and magic...

like · see review

Mar 31, 2013 Jannea rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

This is a treasure of a series. A wonderful read-aloud set for kids (7+ish) and adults alike. A quirky unconventional princess who wants to be captured by a dragon. A noble king who falls in love with her. The whole dragon community. Of course the evil wizards. And a tremendously awesome witch who meets all the qualifications we can think of. The story spans all kinds of silliness and fantastical adventures. A side-splitter, smile-cracker for all time. Definatly worth it.

like · see review

Jan 18, 2012 Valeria Andrea is currently reading it · review of another edition

Shelves: english, fantasy-poetry-philosophy

My mom got the whole pack of 4 books because she thought the looked SO cute!, but the truth is that a week after that I saw the poor pack standing ALL ALONE in the counter, so I pityly took them to my room.

HA! They are not that cute at all mom!

*Dealing With Dragons

Actualy, reading the first book, "Dealing with Dragons", reminded me of the time I read Narnia! & that was, like, a lot of years ago when I was in middle school!
So, Cimorene is a Princess that is sick of being a Princess & t...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Has anyone besides me read The Enchanted Forest Chronicles?	22	40	Oct 17, 2012 06:51am

combine
Other Editions (2)

Genres

Fantasy

351 users

Young Adult

94 users

Fantasy > Dragons

38 users

Childrens

26 users

Adventure

15 users

Fantasy > Magic

13 users

Science Fiction Fantasy

12 users

Humor

11 users

Fantasy > Fairy Tales

9 users

Humor > Funny

5 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Patricia C. Wrede

Patricia Collins Wrede was born in Chicago, Illinois and is the eldest of five children. She started writing in seventh grade. She attended Carleton College in Minnesota, where she majored in Biology and managed to avoid taking any English courses at all. She began work on her first novel, Shadow Magic, just after graduating from college in 1974. She finished it five years later and started her se...more Patricia Collins Wrede was born in Chicago, Illinois and is the eldest of five children. She started writing in seventh grade. She attended Carleton College in Minnesota, where she majored in Biology and managed to avoid taking any English courses at all. She began work on her first novel, Shadow Magic, just after graduating from college in 1974. She finished it five years later and started her second book at once, having become permanently hooked on writing by this time.

Patricia received her M.B.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1977.
She worked for several years as a financial analyst and accountant, first with the Minnesota Hospital Association, then with B. Dalton Booksellers, and finally at the Dayton Hudson Corporation headquarters.

Patricia finished her first novel in late 1978. In January, 1980, Pamela Dean, Emma Bull, Will Shetterly, Steven Brust, Nate Bucklin, and Patricia Wrede -- all, at that point, hopeful but unpublished -- formed the writer's group that later became known as "The Scribblies." In April of 1980, Patricia's first novel sold to Ace Books. It came out at last in 1982, which is the year she met Lillian Stewart Carl (who introduced her to Lois McMaster Bujold by mail).

In 1985, shortly before the publication of her fifth book, she left the world of the gainfully employed to try winging it on her own.

Her interests include sewing, embroidery, desultory attempts at gardening, chocolate, not mowing the lawn, High Tea, and, of course, reading.
She is a vegetarian, and currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her cats, Merlin, Brisen, and Nimue. She has no children, but as of this writing, she does have four nieces and four nephews ranging in age from seven months to twelve years old and in geographical location from Maine to Alabama.
She has published twelve and a half books:
Shadow Magic, Daughter of Witches, The Seven Towers, Talking to Dragons, The Harp of Imach Thyssel, Caught in Crystal, Snow White and Rose Red, Dealing with Dragons, Mairelon the Magician, Searching for Dragons, Calling on Dragons, The Raven Ring, and a collaboration with fellow Minneapolis author Caroline Stevermer, Sorcery and Cecelia, as well as a collection of short stories titled Book of Enchantments. She is also part of the Liavek shared-world anthology. (less)

More about Patricia C. Wrede...

Books by Patricia C. Wrede

Dealing with Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #1)

Searching for Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #2)

Calling on Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #3)

Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #4)

Sorcery & Cecelia: or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate, #1)

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About The Enchanted For...

2 trivia questions

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from The Enchanted Forest C...

“May you and your triple cursed wash water turn purple with orange spots and fall down a bottomless pit!” — 5 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: The Enchanted Forest Chronicles
avg rating	preview: The Enchanted Forest Chronicles Goodreads rating: 4.44 (4835 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/169887.The_Enchanted_Forest_Chronicles?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1219696480l/169887.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/169887.The_Enchanted_Forest_Chronicles?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede[/url]

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #1-4)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website