First King of Shannara.

Terry Brooks. 1996/2003. Read by Scott Brick. Books on Tape. 13--1.5 hour tapes. $96.00. 0-7366-9340-8. Vinyl; plot notes. JSA

This excellent prequel in the Shannara series was written a dozen years after The Sword of Shannara and provides the background of many details in the series. It is set many years before Shea Ohmsford uses the sword to defeat the Warlock Lord once and for all. We see Allanon's initiation as a Druid, the destruction of the Druid Order, the forging of the Sword of Shannara, and the first use of the sword against the Warlock Lord. Allanon's teacher, Bremen, must solve the riddle of four visions in order to save the world temporarily from the rebel Druid Brona who has set himself up as the Warlock Lord.

Brick's familiarity with the series and the characters (from reading other adventures in the Shannara series) adds a great deal to his semi-voiced reading. Brick uses voices and accents for different types of beings (elves, dwarves, etc) and adds excitement through the pace of his skillful reading of this marvelous fantasy tale. Hugh Flick, Jr., Silliman College, Yale Univ., New Haven, CT