SSW: I'm probably not going to say anything new; I hope you don't mind...

I just finished Brisingr and it woke me up a little. There seem to be a ton of things that are unclear or plain silly. Of course, people try to justify it, but they shouldn't have to do that. Deliberately leaving things open to interpretation is different from simply writing poorly. And then there are spots where the author only did something for the cool factor ("I just really wanted to write this scene" disease, as you put it). I wanted to laugh when Eragon cut through a soldier, then stood with his sword arm still extended, waiting for the soldier to fall apart into two pieces.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I think the book is an abomination. I mostly enjoyed reading all three books and will read the fourth (probably once I can get it at the library or in paperback). I just didn't feel like it was much to get excited about. I can see why it's popular for kids - easy to get into and read, with a lot of elements that people like, things that are cliche because they're so popular (like redeeming the bad guy at the last minute). It's 'fantasy lite', easy for young'uns to get into. It'd be hard for most of them to see the flaws - they just enjoy the adventure. *sigh* Which leads them to be hurt and confused when someone criticizes it.

Thinking about it, Eragon kinda reminds me of Twilight. Something that's not particularly well-written, but is worshiped by the masses because, I don't know, it lets them fantasize without having to use their brains much. It's all action. To me, that sort of book could only ever be a guilty pleasure. Maybe. But at least Eragon seems to be aimed at kids, and I don't see so many grown women wearing Eragon t-shirts.

Austin: *sarcasm* How could you not love Eragon? It is, without a doubt, the most original work I've ever seen!

http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/uncyclopedia/images/5/5d/Eragon_poster.png

Yep, definitely not a rip-off.

Sabrina: I just have one small disagreement with your Eldest essay. You made this claim: "They were grim-faced and said little, for words only emphasized their insignificance in that bare and empty land." How? How do words emphasize insignificance? Grr, I wish he would stop for a second trying to sound so grand and actually think about what the words he chose MEAN."

I remember this line from Eldest very clearly because it was one of the only things in the entire book I could actually relate to. My family owns a cottage in the Canadian Shield, it's very rocky terrain with thousands of lakes and mountains that are too small to be mountains but too large to be hills. They make for awesome rock climbing though.

Anyway my point is it's very quiet during the day, the forest isn't very dense unless you're in a section with a lot of pine trees, but it can be a very oppresive silence.

It's hard to put into words what exactly it is I want to say. Whenever I take a walk in those woods with family members I'm always a bit afraid to talk because whenever you stop talking the the forest sort of presses in and everythings too quiet and I do feel really insignificant, like some sort of wild animal could come and kill us and no one would ever really know what happened, we would have just disapeared on a walk in the forest. I don't know if you've done a lot of camping but the area I'm talking about is rather isolated, it's beautiful but removed from civilazation and I really do feel like talking would only make the forest angry or something, like I'm an intruder that could be squashed if disturbed the forest too much.

It's a silly thing to argue I know but I really did understand where Paolini was coming from here because it's something I experience everytime I go camping, which is about five or six times per year. I hope to see a brisingr essay up soon and I apologize for any possible grammatical errors, I'm never really sure when Im supposed to use 'too' instead of 'to.'

swankivy: Problem is, the hypothetical WORDS that they could have spoken would not have "emphasized their insignificance." I'm very familiar with what you're talking about--the majesty of nature making you feel insignificant. What I object to is the idea that words would have emphasized it. How?

Maria: Just an FYI, Tolkien wasn't that original in his own, and his descriptions occasionally went overboard, too. Yes, I know, he can't be compared to Paolini, but I guess it's a bit of a pet peeve when I see people glorify Tolkien over his worth. Most of his story is purely European mythology (notably Scandinavian), and he just added names and tweaked it a bit. Now, what Paolini did by copying his work, that's by no way excusable (although I don't excuse Tolkien either, but I leave it to the fact that a lot of people who read LotR don't read old mythology or lesser known mythology). Overall, I agree with your essays. I just wanted to throw my two cents in, since you glorifying Tolkien scratched me a little on my sensitive spot.

ERIC OBER: I just finished Eragon and am in the process of reading Eldest. I agree with most of your points, although I am not annoyed enough by the story to not read it. I find it to be an amusing piece of fluff. One thing, however, does annoy the crap out of me. In Eldest, Paolini has Saphira goe everywhere with him. She eats dinner, meets officials, has conferences, and much more with Eragon. Either the buildings, rooms, hallways and doors are huge or Saphira is able to change size. Seriously, what kind of room does the Varden's council meet in?

Priya: Hi,

I see that you have expressed your opinion on the two books(Eragon and Eldest) but I must say that you were extremely rude throughout.I also read the comments sent to you by other people and your response to those people and i noticed that you were being more rude.How can you say comment on others' taste?Is yours any better?Everyone has different opinions and I did not care even when I read your essay.But reading your responses i realised it is time somebody taught you manners..or atleast explain to you to behave to others.I dont care if you hate the book..I think nobody should. Simply, anyone can tell YOU that YOU HAVE A BAD TASTE.You have no rights to comment on other people's tastes.
I have read a lot of fantasy like Tolkien, Colfer, Pullman , Rowling and Paolini and I feel that everyones styles are absolutely different.Paolini and Tolkien's styles are similar because they have derived their stories from Norse mythology that is all.If you feel that the copying is the problem, then has not Rowling copied from Greek mythology?What is your answer to that? I am sorry if I sounded rude but i only vented my anger at you. Also you cannot tease someone else's writing style.Can you tell me some books you have written?I will read it and then judge you by it.

Learn your manners,
Priya

[Response to this one is here!]

Amanda: I first heard about you via your Youtube video on the Maridonia Saga (sorry if I spelt that wrong). I realized right away the strength behind your agruements and when it noted that you wrote essays on how much Eragon...well, sucked, I was intrigued to go ahead and see what you had to say.

I was about halfway through the Eragon one when I realized that I had read this exact essay somewhere else (turns out it was on Amazon). As an inspiring author myself, I was heartened by all the negative comments Paolini continues to get as it teaches me about certain pitfalls I should aviod in my own writing.

But your essay was something special. You drilled CP on everything and anything he did wrong, which I think is great. CP got his fame prematuraly and it has forever expanded his ego to a size that will never receed. He's arragent and cocky to even /dream/ about his books being anywhere near the same level as Tolkien. I thoroughly enjoyed your essay and I thank you for voicing the opinion of the many of us sitting around wishing we could come up with an essay this convincing on why Eragon is such a monstrousity.

Still on your page, I couldn't help but take a peek at the negative responses people have been sending you. I wish I could personally respond to each one just to tell them how pathetic their arguements were. I loved how all their counterarguements to yours was the same: he's just a teenager, everything's been done before, you're just jealous...its revolting to know that this was all that people could come up with to support the horendous mess of BS that Christopher reserected that he now claims is a "lyrical beauty". I could have died laughing.

I'm ashamed to admit it, but I really enjoyed Eragon was I was 12. It was cool.
There was adventure. There was a magic.

But then I saw the Lord of the Rings.

LotR changed my view on literature forever. CP does not and will never compare to the kind of masterful storytelling that Tolkien achieved. I'm not saying everything he did was original, but mainly, once again, agreeing with you. The only people out there who /love/ Eragon are those who have never read anything better.

So, before I go, I'd like to thank you once again for what you've done. I look forward to reading the Brisingr (did I spell that right?) essay if one is ever written. You're funny, you're crafty, and you don't take BS from anyone. Keep it up, and know that you're always supported in what you say against Eragon--myself included.

Hekateras: Whoa.

I read through a few of the negative comments and your replies to them. That's some patience you have there.

Also, +1 to everything you said.

jeremy: Rofl that made my day. Cmonnnn, just let the kid have his 15 minutes. And thank you for going into the gritty details, and not just saying "rip off of tolkien and star wars" and just leaving it at that. Which is what people tend to do these days...with everything. I want you to read the book Graceling and/or Fire, and give me your opinions on those. You basically take Twilight and kick it in the nuts until it agrees to mold with a typical fantasy story, and you get Graceling. Good game.

Kate Twesten: Hello!
First, I would like to establish that this comment is in no way meant to dis you or your writing. In fact, I found your essays to be entertaining and I agree that Eragon was pretty badly written, unoriginal, and receiving more attention and praise than it deserves.
The thing I don't get is why you hate Paolini along with as his books. As far as I know, He's never actually done anything to you - unless you count scarring you mentally with the memory of his books, but that's partially your fault for reading them anyway.
What I am trying to say is that I would like an explanation for your dislike of Paolini, not just your dislike of the Inheritance Cycle.
I apologize for any grammatical errors I might have missed, and for anything I might have misunderstood.

lauren: About your essay on the Inheritance Cycle, even though you seemed able to guess what was going to happen, a lot of people (even though younger and not as experienced as you about about these subjects) did not, and it got too hateful, and at times that just took away from your essay. It was an interesting read over all, and I respect your opinion, but I just don?t think all the aspects you pointed out made much of difference. He?s younger than you and he writes in a style that you do not like, but you just need to not be so strong about it because you disagreed with yourself a lot. You said that Tolkein?s work was better, and then you said in the comments that you don?t like it and it?s too descriptive. Some readers like descriptive writing, and though some of the things Paolini described were pretty pointless, it doesn?t mean everything he wrote was.

He probably shouldn?t have placed his writing so soon, I?ll agree with that. But a lot of people still like the series, no matter how awful you think it is. Though a lot of people like things that I think are awful too, so maybe me liking this series and you hating it is just because differences in experience.

I have never read Lord of the Rings, though I will try it and see if I understand your comparisons to it. And maybe the Inheritance Cycle seems to you like a scrapbook of various other books, but it?s new, people like it, and the language Paolini created isn?t as terrible as you seem to think. But, I don?t know the types of things editors look for in novels because I?m less than half your age, so maybe I would hate it too if I knew as much about fantasy novels as you seem to.

All I?m saying is, hating a series is one thing, but writing an essay about why you hate it is another thing entirely. I understand that you hate, but it?s just too much hate and not much else. Your points are there but it?s just a long rant about what is wrong with the Eragon series, and most teenagers don't really care about the editing errors tha tyou found.