Podkin and the Singing Spear

Kieran Larwood's Podkin and the Singing Spear is a rabbit fantasy for 9 year olds about a young hero who'd much rather be having a nap.

What happens

It's the seventh Five Realms book, and we're back with Podkin. A lot is taken as read, so if your reader is new to the series, start with The Legend of Podkin One-Ear.

Podkin is ten now. He's the official Keeper of the sacred Gifts at Dark Hollow warren, which sounded VERY grand until he got the job. Really it's a tabard with "Keeper" stitched on it, a lot of dusting and an assistant with the most annoying cough in the Five Realms (ahem).

Three pedestals in his chamber are still empty. He was told to gather all twelve Gifts, and in two whole years he hasn't even started.

Then a magic mirror that's never done a thing suddenly shows him visitors on the way. Old friends turn up with three strangers, including Uki, a soft-spoken boy with black-and-white fur and glowing crystals strapped to his chest. Their news is the worst kind. The Gorm are coming back.

So Podkin, his sister Paz, little Pook and their friends set off after the missing Gifts. First on the list is Deathwail, a singing spear held by the wild Crowskin tribes. Nobody has a good word to say about the Crowskins.

What makes it so easy to love is Podkin himself. He daydreams about rabbits saluting him in the corridors. He grumbles his way through sword lessons. Then he sobs into Paz's cloak because he's sure it's all his fault. Who hasn't put off a big job until it got even bigger?

There's a lovely thread of the old witch Brigid running through it too. She's left him a letter that's warm, funny and exactly what he needs (with a P.S. about how amazing reading is).

It's worth knowing that the opening chapters are all about danger gathering. A little rabbit listening to the story is already nursing a poisoned arrow wound in his shoulder, the news from the east is about ancient monsters, and Podkin is scared and full of guilt. A sensitive reader might want to talk those bits through together. If the peril is what they love about these books, they'll be desperate to get going.

What to read next

If they're after another band of rabbits heading into danger, with a born storyteller in the group, try Watership Down. Hazel and his jumpy brother Fiver lead a few friends away from home, and Dandelion settles the frightened ones with a tale of the rabbit hero El-ahrairah.