11/19/06 — People are always telling how you need to pay attention in school. All your teachers, your parents, your friends’ parents tell you that you “might need this stuff someday.”

Blah, blah, blah.

Will you ever really need to know what 2x + 3y equals, or how many bones are in your skull?

Maybe. You might.

In “Here, There Be Dragons” by James A. Owen, John wishes he’d paid more attention to his homework. The fate of man depends on it.

Going to school and studying are important, but when World War I raged and John was in the middle of battle, his time with Professor Sigurdsson didn’t seem all that important. Learning obscure languages and ancient words was something that could wait until the war was over.

But then, while John was on medical leave, an urgent note arrived, summoning him to London. The professor had been murdered and John, as his student, was his closest next of kin.

When John arrived at the professor’s study, he was greeted by the London police and two strangers who also had ties to the professor. After being questioned, the three scholars retired to a private club where they were joined by an unusual little man who had something surprising to tell John.

Years before, John had unknowingly been chosen as the caretaker of the Imaginarium Geographica, an atlas of sorts that mapped out all the worlds in this and other realms. Earth was there, as was Middle Earth, Atlantis, and every country that ever existed since the beginning of time.

But that wasn’t all. There was trouble on The Other Side. The old King and his family had been murdered. The ruthless Winter King was claiming to be the blood relative of King Arthur and the next rightful ruler. A counsel would be convened and John, as the caretaker, needed to be there.

With evil Windigo and dark Shadow-Born on their heels, John and his companions fled to the harbor, where they boarded the Indigo Dragon and headed for worlds they never thought were real.

As they sailed across waters that were charted before time began, John wished he’d studied harder with Professor Sigurdsson. That lack of attention might literally mean the end of the world.

What happens when you take Sherlock Holmes, add in Tolkien, mythology, classic literature, history, art, time travel and a little bit of science? You get “Here, There Be Dragons,” and I was surprised at how much I loved this book.

Author James A. Owen put plenty of adventure and some clever twists in his story and, although this is a novel for grades seven-and-up, there are lots of nudge-nudge-wink-wink jokes that will delight adults. While this book would be a challenge for most grade-schoolers to read by themselves, I think it can safely be read aloud to younger fantasy fans.

If you’re tired of waiting for the next installment from a certain Boy Wizard, try this book in the meantime. “Here, There Be Dragons” is most definitely a book you’ll want to pay attention to.



The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Terri has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. She lives in West Salem, Wis., with her husband, three dogs and 9,000 books.