Dragons: They're not just for kids! And aside from playing a prominent role in myriad RPG's, they star in a lot of adult sci-fi and fantasy books as everything from wise teachers to evil tyrants. In A Natural History of Dragons Marie Brennan suspends the idea of draconian sentience that appears in dragon classics like Dragonsdawn in favor of a more scientific approach that still provides a compelling, engaging story that will please readers across a wide range of ages and genders.
In a fantasy world that seems to resemble Victorian England, dragons are not considered an appropriate subject for young ladies to pursue. But from the time Isabella Camherst first learns how to sneak books out of her father's library, she's been in love with the creatures. This interest leads her to some devastatingly dangerous escapades as a child, and ultimately to far-off lands in pursuit of the fledgling field of dragonology. A Natural History of Dragons is the story of her introduction to dragons, and her first expedition to Vystrana in search of the rock-wyrm that lives there. The resulting story of mystery, discovery, corruption and tragedy that is related in this first installment of Isabella's memoirs launches what will become her long and storied career as a premier dragonologist.
Isabella is added to the expedition to serve only to organize the notes taken by the three men, one of whom is her husband Jacob, and to make sketches of the dragons and anything else that may need recording. Of course though, over the course of the study, she becomes much more than support personnel to the party and, indeed, makes some of their most profound discoveries. Her sketches are included in the book, which I thought was a very nice touch.
The qualities of her drawings, beautiful but also precise and scientific, reflects the nature of her admiration for dragons: she is fascinated, amazed and inspired by them, but isn't dragon-mad in the traditional romantic sense. Rather, she sees them as beautiful and noble creatures that have been overlooked by science and should be brought into the light as subjects of legitimate scientific study.
There is a frankness to Isabella's voice that really contributes to the genuine feel of this memoir. She openly admits to her sometimes foolhardy ideas and undertakings, but apologizes to no one for her unconventional life. She also admits to the high price of her expedition to Vystrana, and its implications upon her return. She makes comments aside about her opinions on certain customs or points of view, which really help to illustrate her as a character even though she's also the narrator, and made me giggle outright more than once. Additionally, she mentions when she has chosen to omit a certain event or theme from this book, and explains to the reader her reasons for doing so. For example, much of her journey to Vystrana has been skipped over in her memoirs, and Isabella points us toward another publication of hers if we are interested in further reading on the subject. I am very excited to see how Brennan fills in the gaps and continues to weave the colorful life of her protagonist in further books.
I can't think of a single part of this book that I didn't enjoy. It was beautifully written, with just enough plot twists to keep me guessing at the last piece of the puzzle, colorfully imagined and with enough emotion to make the story personal but not sappy. If you're a fan of the old classic The Flight of Dragons by Peter Dickinson, have an interest in cryptozoology, or just love both science and fantasy, I highly recommend A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan as your next read. It was released in February 2013, and you can find a copy on the shelf at your favorite independent bookstore.
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