There is no way that I am not going to pick up a book with the title, A Natural History of Dragons, and then when I read it was a memoir of Lady Isabella Trent, “the world’s preeminent dragon naturalist” how could I put it down? Well, I did eventually put it down about 3 days after I picked it up!
Much to her mother’s chagrin, Isabella was always interested in nature especially winged creatures and growing up in the countryside of Scirland provided much to observe. Her collections contained everything from winged insects, beetles, feathers to Sparklings. Being the only daughter in a family of six she was constantly getting into things with her brothers that her parents did not approve of though secretly her father was very proud to have such a smart daughter.
One day after being caught dissecting a dove (she does point out it was already dead when she found it) her father sat her down for a long talk about what is ladylike behavior. Realizing that he wouldn’t be able to suppress Isabella’s interest he gave her a book, Gotherham’s Avian Anatomy, with strict orders not to let her mother see it. Isabella’s interests are constantly getting her in trouble and finally her Mother puts her foot down. She is very concerned that no one will want to marry Isabella if she doesn’t start acting more like a lady.
Years later, Isabella and her husband, Jacob, are given the opportunity to go on an expedition to study dragons. Isabella has talked her way into going along because she can draw. She convinced Lord Hilford, who organized the expedition, that she would be an asset. When they reach Vystrana, where they will be studying the Rock-Wyrm Dragon, they come to realize that something is not quite right. The dragons are showing signs of irregular behavior and the small group is determined to find out what the cause is. Little do they know that they will be caught up in a web of corruption that they might not be able to escape.
This volume of the memoirs of Lady Trent is of course very early in her life and I cannot wait for the future volumes to be published. I am positive that Isabella has not left anything out or exaggerated her life experiences at all. In fact she tells us:
“One benefit of being an old woman now, and moreover one who has been called a ‘national treasure’ is that there are very few who can tell me what I may and may not write.”
“Be warned, then: the collected volumes of this series will contain frozen mountains, foetid swamps, hostile foreigners, hostile fellow countrymen, the occasional hostile family member, bad decisions, misadventures in orienteering, diseases of an unromantic sort, and a plenitude of mud. You continue at your own risk. It is not for the faint of heart-no more so than the study of dragons itself. But such study offers rewards beyond compare: to stand in a dragon’s presence, even for the briefest of moments-even at the risk of one’s life-is a delight that, once experienced, can never be forgotten. If my humble words convey even a fraction of that wonder, I will rest content.”
If I could I would say to Lady Isabella Trent that I am not ‘faint of heart’ and I am ready to experience more. If you feel that you too are strong of heart and ready then please (when you have a few days to spare) pick up A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent by Marie Brennan and vicariously go on the adventure of a lifetime!
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