Author: Tamora Pierce
Series: Immortals (Book 1)
Paperback: 362 pages
Publisher: Simon Pulse; 1st edition (December 1st 1992)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416903437
ISBN-13: 9781416903437
Young Daine’s knack with horses gets her a job helping the royal horsemistress drive a herd of ponies to Tortall. Soon it becomes clear that Daine’s talent, as much as she struggles to hide it, is downright magical. Horses and other animals not only obey, but listen to her words. Daine, though, will have to learn to trust humans before she can come to terms with her powers, her past, and herself.
What I thought: I first read this book when I was 12, and Numair was my first literary crush. I was about the same age as Daine in this book (she was 14) and since she looked like me, I clung to the fantasy of being able to live her adventures. As always, Pierce weaved a beautiful coming-of-age story that further enriched my experiences in the world of
Tortall. Pierce has been my biggest inspiration and reading the Immortal series helped cement my dream of being a writer.
The Quote: Never break a promise to an animal. They’re like babies – they won’t understand.
Why I chose it: If you follow me on Instagram – you know that I have a pug and Abner is my baby! I never make a promise to him unless I mean to keep it.
About the Author:
I was born in South Connellsville, PA. My mother wanted to name me “Tamara” but the nurse who filled out my birth certificate misspelled it as “Tamora”. When I was 8 my family moved to California, where we lived for 6 years on both sides of the San Francisco peninsula.
I started writing stories in 6th grade. My interest in fantasy and science fiction began when I was introduced to ‘The Lord of the Rings’ by J. R. R. Tolkien and so I started to write the kind of books that I was reading. After my parents divorced, my mother took my sisters and me back to Pennsylvania in 1969. There I went to Albert Gallatin Senior High for 2 years and Uniontown Area Senior High School for my senior year.
After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, I wrote the book that became The Song of the Lioness fantasy quartet. I sold some articles and 2 short stories and wrote reviews for a martial arts movie magazine. At last the first book of the quartet, Alanna: The First Adventure was published by Atheneum Books in 1983.
Tim Liebe, who became my Spouse-Creature, and I lived in New York City with assorted cats and two parakeets from 1982 – 2006. In 2006 we moved to Syracuse, New York, where we live now with assorted cats, a number of squirrels, birds, raccoons, skunks, opossums, and woodchucks visiting our very small yard. As of 2011, I have 27 novels in print, one short story collection, one comic book arc (“White Tiger: A Hero’s Compulsion”) co-written with Tim, and a short story anthology co-editing credit. There’s more to come, including a companion book to the Tortall `verse. So stay tuned!
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