Egryn by Donald Rees

Enter a magical world of the elves and see a glimpse of their wonderful way of life which has barely changed for centuries. A world devoid of money, crime and more importantly humans; a world full of contentment, humour, adventure and fairness. This is a coming-of-age story of Egryn the elf, who is reaching adulthood and is about to experience the adult elf world. Will the elves be able to maintain their way of life as things start to change around them?

Our own human world is getting smaller, with woodland areas disappearing under slabs of concrete, with pollution and global warming having devastating effects. This book draws parallels between the fictional world of elves and our own existence on this planet as humans. The question running through the book is whether older, more traditional ways of life and a more natural way of living can sustain whilst modern technology advances and growing expansions of infrastructure encroach on the elf way of life. Readers will enjoy reading how elves witness their world being encroached upon. Whilst fictional, the story will leave the reader with thoughts on the importance of nature and how history and culture should be respected and maintained. This is a magical story which has be enjoyed as a simple piece of fiction, or used as a more thought provoking story for older children and adults.