The Great and Terrible Quest

Y'know, I think I'm going to have to keep this one on my shelf. I can't quite put my finger on what made this book so enjoyable for me. It's a tale of a young boy named Trad, who lives with an abusive Grandfather. Ol' Grandpa puts on the airs of being a wizard, but really he's just a well educated

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trickster, who regularly has business with thugs, thieves and other immoral persons. Trad has learned to play the idiot around everyone, and manages to have a bit of a life playing in the woods when Grandfather isn't looking. One day Trad happens to encounter an old man in the woods--a man who has suffered from a terrible head wound and is wandering around amnesiac. Trad manages to offer him meager food and shelter, and discovers that the man is on a quest. He's forgotten the details, but it's a quest nonetheless. Trad quickly decides to help and the adventure goes on from there. Why I liked it so much, I don't know. The characters are good, but not compelling. The mystery of the old man is intriguing, but not very difficult. Maybe it's the way the overall plot is weaved together, a web of secrets and connections. I don't know. Maybe I should read it again and try to figure it out.
--J.

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This comes close to being the perfect fantasy.

Trad, a poor orphan boy, finds himself in the middle of amazing events, as an amnesiac minstrel drags him along on a quest to return the lost king to his throne.

I loved it as a child, and it's still good - I can't wait to read it aloud to Elayne.