Prairie Fire

March 1, 2015

Gr 8 Up-There is a little something for everyone in this sequel to the acclaimed The Story of Owen (Carolrhoda Lab, 2014). Fantasy fans will love returning to an alternate world in which the armed forces slay dragons. History fans will get a kick out of the way Johnston intermixes actual U.S. and Canadian history with a dragon-friendly story line. Eco-aware fans are unlikely to miss the underlying sentiment that oil brings nothing but trouble in both titles. This time around Owen, Sadie, and Siobhan have enlisted in the Oil Watch (think the U.S. Army, but with more fire drills). While Sadie and Owen excel with ease, troubadour Siobhan struggles to prove her worth. When the three are stationed in separate locations, Siobhan must learn to find her role without the reassurance of her two best friends. VERDICT A fantasy YA novel that steers clear of love triangles, teen angst, and a tidy ending is hard to come by; Prairie Fire and its prequel are must-haves.-Jennifer Furuyama, Pendleton Public Library, OR

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from January 1, 2015
This follow-up to the acclaimed The Story of Owen (2014) is part adventure, part alternative history, part friendship story, part ecological fable and all heroic saga.Once dragon slayer Owen Thorskard graduates high school, he signs up for his mandatory service in the Oil Watch, and of course Siobhan McQuaid, his bard and best friend, enlists as well. Their previous exploits (chronicled in Siobhan's songs, now a YouTube sensation) have made the pair unpopular with those in power, so they receive the dreariest, most remote deployment: Fort Calgary. Grueling practice gradually coheres their raw support team into a tough fighting unit-and trusted friends. But are they prepared for the test of the biggest, deadliest dragon of all? This sequel is not as perfectly crafted as Johnston's debut: The plethora of new characters is hard to keep straight, the minutiae of military training drag on the pace, and promising subplots peter out without resolution. Still, the narrative is held together by Siobhan's unique voice, which casts every character as an instrument, every event as a melody; all she witnesses is knit together in a symphony expressing universal themes of friendship, duty, loyalty and sacrifice. For all Siobhan's insistence that she merely channels Owen's story, it becomes evident that tales are as much about their tellers and that heroism comes in all forms. Grand, heartbreaking, ennobling and unforgettable. (Fantasy. 12-18)

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February 1, 2015
Grades 8-11 Owen, dragon slayer in training, is required to serve in the Oil Watch for four years, during which time he'll learn to work with the support team, who will help him fight dragons around the world. Siobhan, his bard, is less certain of her role, since there hasn't been a bard in the Oil Watch for a very long time. But as she learns military life, she also discovers the dangers that come with being a part of history. Since this sequel dives right into Siobhan's life after the events of The Story of Owen (2014), this volume is by no means a stand-alone story. Fans of that standout novel, however, will love watching Siobhan gradually find out she is the hero of her own story, not merely the narrator of Owen's life. American readers may be thrown by some elements of Canadian history and geography, but Johnston's solid writing will keep them engaged with her smooth blend of fantasy and realism, all anchored by Siobhan's determined personality and her solid friendship with Owen and his team.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)