#natural history of dragons

[somebogwitch]

Natural History of Dragons Audiobook Review

Tiktok is all about fantasy with dragons in it right now and I love a band wagon (so long as that wagon contain a dragon)

#audiobook #natural history of dragons #Dragons #booktok #booklr #marie brennan #lady trent #fantasy

[amnhnyc]

🐉 Long before the development of paleontology as we know it, people unearthed fossilized bones and believed they had found the remains of dragons from an earlier age.

🐉 Happy Year of the Dragon! What animal are you? Emojis only.

#amnh #museum #fossil #dinosaur #natural history #science #paleontology #nature #animals #year of the dragon #lunar new year #chinese new year #did you know #fact of the day #dragons

[jessicaroux]

Cover reveal! 🐉 A Natural History of Dragons is coming this fall, written by Emily Hawkins and published by Quarto kids 🖤 it’s available for preorder from all your favorite booksellers. Presented as a handbook from the late 1800s written for the students of the Academie Solomonar: the only school for dragon-riders, this beautiful volume sets out to reveal the hidden world of dragons. Within these pages you will meet mysterious and majestic dragons from around the globe, read about ancient lore and superstitions, learn about their life cycle, anatomy, habits and habitats, and discover the secrets behind dragon flight.

#dragon #dragons #a natural history of dragons #illustration #artists on tumblr #jessica roux #jessicaroux #kidlit

[b4kuch1n]

post-drive sketch commissions fulfilled so far! for Cookie Nomie, A. Peake, @azaelyas, viviiyon on twitter, bxby_ashhh on twitter, tsunesama, @trucbiduleschouettes, and Anna.

#commission art #e-sims for gaza #hello! its been a hot minute #I have been. cooking a Lot. such is the nature of lunar new year #but I have. also been racing to finish up some craft stuff due to sudden request from benefactor (mother) #and I was out of hanoi for uhhh two days in total. couldnt open my laptop during those #and also I've finally caught up on sherlock&co.... I. can see something approach in the near future. u must simply excuse me #hope everyones doing well hope theres been good eatin. hope weve been keepin up with helpin out where we can #news are turning in directions that make me hopeful. that have a familiar look I know from our own history #I will keep chippin away at the rest of the queue during the holiday. we gotta do what we can. I'm glad I can help at all #one more day til the year of the dragon. I'll show u guys the stuff I made for lunar new year tomorrow. for now I sleep #have a good night guys! every dragon was once a carp etc

[terapsina]

#2 for the book worm ask game!

(ask game)

2. Favorite fantasy book(s).

(Eeeeexcellent, I do love fantasy books. Though how I'm gonna narrow it to only a few I've got no idea. Okay. I'm going to remove the very obvious choices like Lord of the Rings (though it is one of my faves)).

---

Monstrous Regiment. I love the entire Discworld series (especially The Witches) but I've also got a huge soft spot in my heart for Terry Pratchett's take on 'a girl dresses like a boy to go to war' (and thinks of everything except some spare socks in- erm... the right place). Along with Polly, the squad consists of a vampire, a troll, an Igor, a religious fanatic and two very, very close "friends" (and yes, the official summary put the friends in quotes too). And everyone has their own secret.

I love basically everything about this book and I can't tell you guys any of it because it would spoil all the fun.

The Goblin Emperor. This one's a story filled with light. Maia the half goblin son of the elven Emperor was never supposed to take the throne (or to ever even be at court. because racism). And then everyone ahead of him dies in a single "accident" and suddenly he's the new Emperor. Maia is a good person, and a kind one, and despite everything that gets thrown at him he keeps hold of that understanding of right and wrong and refuses to bend.

(I have to mention that the language of the writing is kinda hard to get into in the beginning, and the characters's have very complicated and long names, but once you get into it it really did enhance the story for me).

Good Omens. An Angel and a Demon try to stop the apocalypse and instead lose the Antichrist. I've loved that book for like a decade now and if I don't put it on a list of my faves that list would be a lie.

The King of Attolia. Third in The Queen's Thief series and my favorite one out of all of them. I've always enjoyed Outsider POV in fics. And here is a book that just... proves why. We've got Eugenides and Irene, the Thief and the Queen, and we know them from the two previous books. And adore them. But the story isn't from their POV, it's from the POV of Costis, a Queen's guard who's suddenly gotten assigned to the King. The useless, weak, undeserving king that as far as Costis is concerned doesn't deserve to even kiss the Queen's boots. And it's hilarious to read the story from the eyes of someone who knows so much less than us. And so satisfying, as he begins to understand.

(I recommend the whole series and am personally glad to have read them in the published order but Megan Whalen Turner has stated that she wrote them in a way that allows you to jump in at any point you want).

The Raven Tower. The story is from the viewpoint of a sentient, omniscient rock whose name is Strength and Patience of the Hill and it is the GREATEST THING EVER. The gods are real and must be very careful with their words, because if they speak a lie the reality will alter to make that lie the truth but if the lie is bigger than the power of the god... well. Inspired by Hamlet.

(the book also has a trans man as the main character; the other main character? The sentient rock is the narrator but the largest part of the story focuses on Eolo).

A Natural History of Dragons. The first book from The Memoirs of Lady Trent (and honestly it would probably be more honest to say that every single book from this series fits the category of fave but I'm putting up the first here because this isn't a series where you should skip ahead). The book focuses on the life of Isabella as narrated by her older self. This is the story how a Scirland lady bucked all tradition and became a world renowned expert on the Natural History of Dragons.

(this series has a piece of my heart and always will).

---

(and finally, here's some more of my favorite fantasy books that I also adore and would totally ramble about but I got tired of typing).

#monstrous regiment #the goblin emperor #good omens #the king of attolia #the raven tower #a natural history of dragons #discworld #terry pratchett #katherine addison #neil gaiman #the queen's thief #megan whalen turner #ann leckie #the memoirs of lady trent #marie brennan #fantasy books #book rec #book recs #book asks #ask game #ask meme #answers #tinynavajo #terapsina rambles #terapsina's book rambles

[maddiesbookshelves]

A Natural History of Dragons, by Marie Brennan

The memoirs of Lady Trent narrate the life and research of Isabella Trent, world-renowned naturalist now an old woman, whose wit and humor are merciless towards imbeciles. In the first tome, Isabella, first as a young girl and then a young woman, challenges class and period conventions to satisfy her scientific curiosity and accompany her husband on an expedition in search for dragons in Vystrana...

I was scared that the memoirs format was going to be boring to read, but it was actually the best way to tell the life story of a woman who has lived so many adventures, I really liked it. The good thing about memoirs is that it allowed Isabella's personality to shine, especially her humor, and to have some hindsight on what happened. The teases about future events that she reveals later in the series really make you want to read what's next

Volume 1 introduces themes and ideas that I thought were fleshed out better later in the series, and what I considered as small flaws (a lot of things were repeated so many times I started thinking "yeah, okay, I get it") are way less prominent

As for Brennan's worldbuilding, it's deceptively simple at first glance (Victorian era but make it fantasy), but actually had so many details that make it extremely rich. Everything is inspired by countries/cultures from the real world, but Brennan mixed a lot of them and I thought it was really well executed. And the further along you get in the series, the more details sprinkled in the first 3 books come together to form the final picture. When I got to the end of book 4, I wanted to scream because of how delightful and well put together the reveals were

French version under the cut

Les mémoires de lady Trent racontent la vie et les recherches d'Isabelle Trent, naturaliste mondialement connue et désormais vieille dame, dont l'esprit et le style empreints d'humour s'avèrent sans pitié pour les imbéciles. Dans le premier volume, Isabelle, petite fille puis jeune femme, brave les conventions de sa classe et de son temps pour satisfaire sa curiosité scientifique et accompagner son mari lors d'une expédition à la recherche des dragons de Vystranie...

J'avais peur que le format des mémoires soit un peu ennuyant à lire, mais en fait c'était la meilleure façon de raconter la vie d’une femme qui a vécu autant d’aventures, j’ai beaucoup apprécié. L'avantage des mémoires c'est que ça permettait au personnage d'Isabelle de nous dévoiler sa personnalité, notamment son humour, et d'avoir du recul sur certains évènements. Les références à des évènements qu'elle nous dévoile plus tard dans la série donnait vraiment envie de lire la suite

Le tome 1 introduit des thèmes et des idées que j’ai trouvées mieux développées dans les tomes suivants, et ce que je considérais comme de petits défauts (pas mal de choses sont répétées de nombreuses fois donc au bout d’un moment je me disais "oui, c’est bon, j’ai compris") sont beaucoup moins présents

En ce qui concerne le monde créé par Brennan, il paraît relativement simple au premier abord (époque victorienne mais version fantasy), mais en réalité, énormément de détails le rendent extrêmement riche. Tout est inspiré de pays/cultures du monde réel, mais mélange pas mal de trucs et j’ai trouvé que c’était très bien fait. Et au plus on avance dans la série, au plus les détails disséminés dans les ~3 premiers tomes s'emboîtent et le tableau final se précise. Quand je suis arrivée à la fin du tome 4 j'avais envie de hurler tellement les révélations étaient croustillantes et bien amenées

#the memoirs of lady trent #lady trent #a natural history of dragons #memoirs of lady trent #marie brennan #books #book series #book reviews #booklr #booklr community #book recs #book recommendations

[haveyoureadthisfantasybook]

vote yes if you have finished the entire book.

vote no if you have not finished the entire book.

(faq · submit a book)

#fantasy #books #A Natural History of Dragons #The Memoirs of Lady Trent #Marie Brennan #poll #result: no #l: English

[a-book-of-creatures]

Species of unicorns (with typo).

From Dragons and Unicorns: A Natural History by Paul and Karin Johnsgard.

#unicorns #dragons and unicorns a natural history #paul and karin johnsgard #taxonomy

[teaearlgrayhot]

if i had a nickel for every time i read a historical fantasy series about a world with dragons that followed a Georgian/Victorian era English protagonist where each book in the series focused on a different geographical part of the world and ultimately featured the protagonist struggling to follow their own code of honor against a global political conflict

i’d have two nickels

#yes these are two of my favorite series #yes this may be my favorite niche genre #what about it #temeraire #naomi novik #a natural history of dragons #marie brennan

[blluespirit]

I sort of like the thought that Zuko and Aang take the Sun Warriors' warning not to tell anyone about the dragons a little more seriously… and they keep it between them. Of course, they trust Sokka, Toph and Katara. Of course they know they wouldn’t tell anyone, but now three people (including Iroh) know the truth about Ran and Shaw. And that’s three too many when you’re trying to keep a secret.

(and there are other people at the temple as well - like Haru, Teo and The Duke - who, while trustworthy, aren’t as close to them as the others, and when it comes to secrets with as much consequence as this one, you can’t afford to take any chances.)

Furthermore, the culture within the Fire Nation since Sozin’s rein has been warped. The culture is not to respect the dragons as the original firebenders, it’s to conquer and kill them. It’s the ultimate proof of your strength as a firebender. All it takes is one mistake before rumour spreads, and people go looking for the ultimate hunt. It’s not something Zuko or Aang can risk.

Whether Katara, Toph and Sokka (and Suki) ever find out the truth is up to you. But post-war, after Zuko returns from a strange, poorly explained trip with a dragon, and eventually develops the ability to use rainbow fire, either the others have some questions about Aang’s knowing look, or they are finally let in on a monumental secret.

#it’s a kids show so i think for that reason it was played for laughs about keeping the dragons a secret is not necessarily a bad choice... #the show does that sometimes where it says something off hand and then leaves me lying face down contemplating ✨the consequences✨ of that #but there are some… implications there about being too loose lipped with the truth in leading up to the end of and immediately post #war fire nation. just because zuko understands the spiritual significance of a dragon it does not mean the rest of his people will. actuall #its more likely that they'd reject zuko's opinion considering that he's basically coming into power and then telling everyone that #they've been lied to their whole lives. the fire nation is drowning in propaganda. for a lot of people this opinion of dragons and #firebending's true nature being violence and destruction is all they know. fire is LIFE but to most people that's an alien concept #and in terms of keeping secrets - it’s not even a matter of trust it’s a matter of too many people knowing #you might not even realised you’ve revealed some incredible information to someone who has the means to spread it or pursue it #so… i think zuko would be hyper aware of this. since he grew up hearing stories about the 'glory' of dragon hunting #and since iroh has also made a concerted effort to keep this information hidden i think it makes sense he’d be very hesitant to let it #get out to the public #aang would agree i think esp if zuko explained the importance of hiding them even from loved ones #ALSO random but it also makes me wonder what the fire nation said about roku in wake of the war #he had a dragon but he didn’t kill it. he didn’t ’conquer’ it #sozin would have had to work his ASS off to reframe history as him being the more… loyal(?) patriotic (?) of the two #did he frame it as roku didn’t have the courage to kill a dragon??? that he lacked the strength of a true firebender? #the avatar works hard but sozin's propaganda machine works harder 🧍‍♀️ #zuko #aang #avatar the last airbender #zuko & aang #jack talks #sun warriors #book 3 #what is it with me having a whole separate post in the tags 👁️👄👁️

[somebogwitch]

Natural History of Dragons Audiobook Review

Tiktok is all about fantasy with dragons in it right now and I love a band wagon (so long as that wagon contain a dragon)

#audiobook #natural history of dragons #Dragons #booktok #booklr #marie brennan #lady trent #fantasy

[bookishfae]

i understand isabella camherst bc i too would marry a man who had a library and shared my hyperfixation

#lady trent #isabella camherst #a natural history of dragons #marie brennan #jacob camherst #a memoir by lady trent

[shayberri789]

Underrated Book Series Recommendations

Here are some recommendations for series I think don't get half as much hype or attention as they deserve. The first page has book details, the second has a summary and my review/opinion of it!

I've created plain text versions - these with image descriptions in the ALT - of the reviews below the cut for legibility.

#shay posts #I have another series to add but I first need to reread it since its been a while #also gotta get my hands on the rest of the series #its so under-appreciated that trying to find it is difficult lol #book recommendation #book rec #super powereds #a natural history of dragons #memoirs by lady trent #cradle #cradle series #wei shi lindon arelius #wei shi lindon #my hero acedamia #boku no hero academia #bnha

[logictoinsanity]

Isabella Camherst is the most autistic, aro ace bitch I've ever heard of, and while I will not be accepting questions at this time, I am only on the second book, so im open to growth and fluidity. she's 100% autistic and queer though, I'll fight u on that

#lady trent #a natural history of dragons #memoirs of lady trent #tropic of serpents #marie brennan

[jewishdragon]

ok now that i re-read the first Memoirs of Lady Trent i have come to the conclusion that the two human cultures featured in Book 1 (A Natural history of dragons) are sects of judaism (in a fantasy world where xianity didnt happen??? i have only read book `1 so i dont know if there is a xianity equivalent anywhere), one representing rabbinical judaism (described as developing around scholarly debate of scripture) and one representing a judaism that retained the temple (which developed a culture of maintaining temple rituals though in their own towns). Both sharing many practices and of course source material (using noisemakers to ward off evil, mourning rituals are actually still shared, the holy scriptures are the same ones) but interpreting and interacting with it in different ways

oh and the books are about a crazy lady scientist who travels the world solving mysteries about dragonkind which is the reason i picked up the books. the fantasy judaism is like. i cant say its a bonus bc its more like the main focus of the book (natural history mysteries/science/dragons) is steak and the world culture is the garlic roasted potatoes on the side.

Oh and if you dont believe me that its fantasy judaism the actual words used to describe the religious practices are not subtle in the inspiration. The rabbinical practice mentions a purim equivalent (this is extremely obvious, they use groggers to drown out the name of an evil man), and the mourning period was straight up called shiva. a character "sat shiva". OH AND THE MAIN CHARACTER HAD TO BE CLEANSED IN "LIVING WATER" AT SOME POINT AKA DIP IN A MIKVAH !!!! anyways im on book 2 its great.

#memoirs of lady trent #a natural history of dragons

[maddiesbookshelves]

Fav books of 2023 (in no particular order and not including re-reads)

#i'm glad my mom died #jenette mccurdy #a natural history of dragons #marie brennan #six crimson cranes #elizabeth lim #this one only made the cut because i didn't have enough novels #99% of it is sooooo good tho #the ending and the second book still make me angry #elizabeth lim should just stop writing duologies #malgré tout #jordi lafebre #my love mix up #wataru hinekune #aruko #le jardin paris #gaelle geniller #the apothecary diaries #nekokurage #natsu hyuuga #favs of 2023 #fav books of 2023 #i didn't read as many novels as i wanted #but it was still a good year for reading