Deltora series

The Deltora book series is the collective title for three series of children’s fantasy books, written by Australian author Emily Rodda. It follows the adventures of three companions as they journey across the magical land of Deltora, endeavouring to recover magical artifacts and defeat allies of the evil Shadow Lord. The series was first published in Australia between 2000 and 2005. It has been published in more than 30 countries and has sold 10 million copies worldwide, including 2 million in Australia. [http://www.scholastic.com.au/common/about/news_item.asp?NewsID=156 Scholastic Aus News] at Scholastic.com.au] It is published by Scholastic in Australia and the USA. The series is illustrated by Marc McBride in most countries.

The series consists of fifteen books: the first eight comprise the Deltora Quest series, the next three comprise the Deltora Shadowlands series (also known as Deltora Quest 2) and the final four comprise the Dragons of Deltora series (also known as Deltora Quest 3). There are five other official books that complement the series: "The Deltora Book of Monsters", "Tales of Deltora", "The Authorised Ultimate Deltora Quiz Book", "How to Draw Deltora Monsters", and "How to Draw Deltora Dragons." An anime adaptation of the series is currently showing on Japanese television. [http://www.anime.org.au/main/news.php?page=4 Anime and manga for Australia] at Anime.org.au]

Creation and publication

Emily Rodda conceived of the "Deltora" series as a classical [quest] featuring a continuing storyline told over several books. [http://www.scholastic.com/deltora/author.htm Deltora Quest Author: Emily Rodda] at Scholastic.com] She purposely modelled the structure of the series on the structure of a video game, after noting how engaged her own children were with video games. [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/02/28/1046407753892.html How the quest was won] at smh.com.au] The success of Rodda's previous fantasy series, "Rowan of Rin", helped "Deltora" get published as both series take place in completely fantastic worlds: "Rowan of Rin" was unusual because most children's fantasy series published at that time followed the Alice in Wonderland model where contemporary children found their way into a magical world. [http://www.scholastic.com.au/titles/rowanofrin/interview.asp Q & A with Emily Rodda] at Scholastic.com.au] Rodda worked on the manuscript for some time before taking it to her publisher. She spent time developing the world of Deltora before working on the story in great detail—Rodda believes that fantasy authors must make their fictional worlds seem completely real. [http://www.abc.net.au/sundayprofile/stories/s1226076.htm Fantasy Writers :: Sunday Profile at] Abc.net.au]

"Deltora" is an adventure novel that features genre staples such as sword fights and monsters. The continuing story of each series is broken down into stages through the use of plot coupons. It also makes use of plot twists, red herrings and foreshadowing, especially in regards to the backstories of its central characters. It also draws heavily on the conventions of the fantasy genre: it features magical amulets, a disembodied evil Dark Lord and a teenage boy hero. Each book includes some maps, diagrams or illustrations.

The Deltora series is well known for its array of fictional plants and animals.Fact|date=August 2008

The series is marketed for younger readers aged 8 to 14, [At [http://shop.scholastic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?homeURL=custom&APP_ID=SSO&CurrentPage=0&CurrFilter=CharactersSeries&InitialTotal=1032&SortSpec=score+desc+Title+asc&newQuery=hardCode&RangeStart=0&ResultStart=1&isNextClicked=false&isBrowse=Y&homeURL=custom&CharactersSeries=Characters_and_Series%2FDeltora+%2817%29&catalogId=10004&storeId=10101&langId=-1&viewParam=CategoryDisplay Shop.Scholastic.com] most of the Deltora books are listed as recommended for readers aged 9-12 except for "The Deltora Book of Monsters" (8 and up), "The Cavern of the Fear" (8-12) and "The Isle of Illusion" (9-14).] although it has been recommended by fans for readers of all ages. [http://abc.net.au/rollercoaster/therap/reviews/s1001393.htm Deltora Quest 3 - Books Reviews] at abc.net.au] The first eight books are all about 120 pages long in their Australian versions. The next three are slightly longer at around 135 - 145 pages each. The final four are the longest, ranging from around 160 to 185 pages. In some countries the series are available in boxed sets and all-in-one volumes.

Plot

etting

The books are centered around the magical land of Deltora, particularly the major cities: Del (the capital where the royal family resides), Raladin, Hira, Rithmere, Dread Mountain, Tora, and Jaliad. Deltora is roughly pentagonal in shape and is bordered by The Silver Sea to the west, and mountains to the north. Beyond these mountains lie the Shadowlands, a barren, desolate plain ruled by the Shadow Lord.

Deltora Quest

The first series of "Deltora Quest" follows the journeys of Lief, who has set out to do his father's quest of saving Deltora. Joining Lief is the ex-palace guard Barda. Along the way they meet with Jasmine - a wild child of the Forests of Silence. Their quest is to find the seven gems of the fabled Belt of Deltora: topaz, ruby, opal, lapis lazuli, emerald, amethyst, and diamond. Each gem is hidden in a dangerous location around Deltora and the three friends must face all sorts of perils to reach them. Once the Belt is complete the evil tyranny of the Shadow Lord will end and Deltora's one sole heir will take his/her rightful place on the quest.

The books are "The Forests of Silence", "The Lake of Tears", "City of the Rats", "The Shifting Sands", "Dread Mountain", "The Maze of the Beast", "The Valley of the Lost", and "Return to Del".

Deltora Shadowlands

In "Deltora Quest 2", Lief, Barda, and Jasmine set out on a quest below the land of Deltora, and travel through strange societies underground. They were formed by the three tribes of the former inhabitants of the Shadowlands, which was, long ago, a beautiful land, with the Shadow Lord repressed by the magic of the Pirran Pipe. The three adventurers convince each tribe to lend them their pieces of the Pipe, before Lief, Barda and Jasmine travel into the Shadowlands itself in order to use the Pipe to hold off the Shadow Lord and his power long enough for the thousands of Deltoran slaves to escape.

The books are "The Cavern of the Fear", "The Isle of Illusion", and "The Shadowlands".

Dragons of Deltora

Once again the three companions have to save Deltora, this time from the Four Sisters, evil creations of the Shadow Lord. These four sisters sing their songs of death across Deltora causing Deltora's food supply to become limited. With only a part of a torn map, left by Doran the Dragonlover, they set out to find these sisters and destroy them. Each sister is destroyed with the aid of a dragon. When each sister and the sister's Guardian are destroyed another fragment of the map is found and they discover that the final sister is hidden in their hometown of Del. While they try to stop the sister the rest of Del is being poisoned by the evil Guardian of the South. Eventually, after the three companions destroy the sister of the south, a great poisonous acid is released from the center of Deltora. With the help of the last seven dragons, the poison is stopped and the series ends with the wedding of Jasmine and Lief.

The books are "Dragon's Nest", "Shadowgate", "Isle of the Dead", and "The Sister of the South".

Main characters

Lief

At the start of the series, Lief is the son of a blacksmith who lives in the run down city of Del. He is hot-headed and spends his time roaming the streets and both creating and dodging trouble. On his 16th birthday he leaves Del on the quest to find the magical jewels and the heir to Deltora. During the series, Lief competes in a fighting contest in which he describes his special skill as speed. By the end of the second series, his love for Jasmine is revealed, and she returns his feelings later on. Lief finds out that he is the heir to the throne of Deltora, he becomes the king, and saves Deltora three times. On rare occaisons, however, he shows himself to be an unworthy leader and makes rash decisions. In the end he befriends all the Deltoran dragons and marries Jasmine. He restarts the tradition of wearing the Belt day and night, as Adin, the first king, did. Lief is very courageous and usually trustworthy. Only a few times has he considered giving up the quest and his friends or allys have always made him keep up the quest. in #6 Maze of The Beast, an Ol made to look like Barda tried to make him give up the quest but the real Barda killed the Ol and gave Lief and Jasmine hope and he ends up completing his quest.

Jasmine

At the start of the series Jasmine is a wild orphan girl who lives a solitary life in the dangerous Forests of Silence. Her only friends in the Forests are the blackbird named Kree and a small furry animal called Filli. Jasmine understands the language of trees and many other animals. She is hot-headed, like Lief, though she displays far less tact. She finds her long lost father and they are once again reunited. She is about the same age as Lief. During the series, Jasmine competes in a contest in which she describes her special skill as agility. She shows romantic interest in Lief, and ends up marrying him. She and Lief also have kids named Anna, after Jasmine's deceased mother, Endon, and Jarred, after Lief's deceased father.

Barda

At the start of the series Barda appears to be a poor beggar living on the streets of Del. He is revealed to be a capable fighter who was intended to act as a bodyguard to Lief, much to Lief's dismay. He is a skilled swordsman and frequently makes jokes about being stuck with two young hot-heads- Lief and Jasmine. He is about the same age as Lief’s parents. During the series, Barda competes in a contest in which he describes his special skill as strength.He helps Lief and Jasmine along the quest and is always strong-hearted and never gives up hope and is a gentle giant.

Themes

A recurring political theme expressed in the series is that a leader who does not understand ordinary people is doomed to failure.Fact|date=August 2008 Another political theme focuses on the disastrous results of leaders who ignore history.Fact|date=August 2008 The final books explores the insidious nature of despair.Fact|date=August 2008 The 1st and 2nd series explores the theme of "united we stand, divided we fall". The theme of gambling, and how it equates to trickery also revisits the story occasionally.Fact|date=August 2008

Adaptations

Rodda has said there has been some interest in adapting the Deltora series into a film but she refused to let any adaptation change the story. There is also a Nintendo DS real-time RPG game confirmed with all three characters. A 56 part "Deltora Quest" anime series of the first eight books began its broadcast season in Japan on January 6, 2007. Rodda chose this option because she and her kids "love" Japanese anime and because she wanted any adaptation of "Deltora" to be “cool.” The series is produced at Oriental Light and Magic and is directed by Mitsuru Hongō. The studio keeps the quest magic jewels intact in the story, but one noticeable alteration has been made: Lief’s hair color has been changed from black to blonde. Others include the Ressurection of Theagan along with at least one new villain, Oscar. [http://www.deltoraquest.jp Deltora Quest 2007] at deltoraquest.jp] Rodda has not ruled out a live action version of the story (either film or television) being made at some point in the future, but she intends to wait until she gets an offer that "is genuinely admiring of the books as they are." There is currently a manga adaptation by Makoto Niwano, serialised in Bom Bom Comics and published by Kodansha. [http://bombom.kodansha.co.jp/?module=Manga&action=List&list_id=13 Deltora Quest] at bombom.kodansha.co.jp]

References

External links

* [http://www.scholastic.com.au/titles/deltoraquest/ Australian Deltora Quest website]
* [http://www.scholastic.com/deltora/ US Deltora website]
* [http://www.emilyrodda.com/ Emily Rodda's official website]
* [http://www.deltoraquest.jp/ Deltora Quest anime website]