Alanna the First Adventure: Book by Tamora Pierce

Alanna of Trebond wanted to be a knight of the realm of Tortall, in a time when girls were forbidden to be warriors. She was a very determined person; she had a goal and was very intent on pursuing it. She was strong-willed and had tendencies to have a temper, like her name sake The Lioness. She loved to go on adventures and was very stubborn; if she set her mind to it she would do it. Rather than give up her dream, she and her brother Thom, who wanted to be a mage, switch places. Alanna achieved her goal of becoming a page through hard work and persistence. Eventually, she rid her country of very powerful demons called the nameless ones or Yasindir. Alanna had all these attributes and determination and it made her a powerful force to be reckoned with.

Alanna did not want to learn how to be a lady; she did not want to learn how to curtsy properly or speak like a noble born lady. Noble born girls went to the convent to learn those things and the first-born son went to train to be a knight. Alanna would of much rather spend her time rolling in the mud, practicing how to properly battle with another knight and learn war strategy. She changed her name to Alan of Trebond; her new home was the palace. The palace was in the city of Corus and which was in the country of Tortall. Alanna’s servant Coram, a gruff retired soldier had trained Alanna and her twin in ways to survive in the wilderness and how to use simple weapons since they were very young. Coram (very grudgingly) allowed Alanna to disguise herself as a boy for the eight years it took to train to become a knight.

Alanna arrived at the palace with Coram and began her training. She had an older page named Gary to show her some of the ropes of what was done day by day and she quickly knew what was expected of her. She had a very proud nature and didn’t ask any of her friends for help, even when some of the older boys were bothering her. Her friends would have gladly helped her, even the heir to the Tortallan throne, Prince Jonathan (with whom she became very good friends). Not wanting to seem weak, she dealt with the problem herself, even if it meant getting beaten up every day by an older, taller boy. Alanna had a very powerful gift of healing and other sorcery; so she healed herself every time after getting a black eye. She finally taught the bully a lesson he would never forget, using the tricks she had learned from the “king” of the Court of Rouges, or (king of thieves) George Cooper.

The Prince had fallen ill with the sweating fever which had been traveling quickly through their city. It had drained all healers of power and would kill the person it infected in a matter of a few days if they did not recover quickly. The Prince was among the last to be effected. The sickness was of magical origin. Alanna had been