Standard Hero Behavior

Mason is a struggling bard who dreams of going on real adventures even while he has to work hard to pay off his Protection Tax. You see, the town of Darlington (formerly Highsmith) no longer has its own heroes. Instead, the entire town pays their taxes to Duke Darlington in return for him keeping them safe from orcs, goblins, trolls, and whatever else may attack. When Mason finds out that not everything about the Duke meets the eye, he also realizes that the town is in danger, and only he and his friend Cowel will be able to save them by going off and finding some real heroes!

The humorous, tongue-in-cheek tone of the story reminded me somewhat of Diana Wynne Jones' _Dark Lord of Derkholm_. Anderson similarly pokes fun of the genre -- show more for example, when Mason wants his fortune told, "Madame Pirogue" ends up being some old guy named Joe who just uses the cards for show. Anderson also uses very modern phrases in both the narrative and the dialog to humorous effect. While the ending wasn't entirely unexpected, the ride was fun. show less

Reviewed by Natalie Tsang for TeensReadToo.com

STANDARD HERO BEHAVIOR by John David Anderson is the funniest and most enjoyable quest story I've read in awhile. I've always been under the impression that there is something inherently serious about quest stories, but here heroics and humor are combined in a combination as smooth and delicious as cookies and milk.

This is not to say the stakes aren't high. Mason Quayle, a teenage bard, and his best friend, Cowel, have three days to find some heroes to save their village from an onslaught of monsters. On the way, they are attacked by... a cross-dressing thug, militant pixies, and a pack of terrifying if ridiculous animals called "whatisits."

But to start at the beginning, Mason Quayle is a show more bard who has nothing to commemorate. His town, Highsmith, recently renamed Darlington, was once constantly in danger from orcs and goblins and something of a hero resort, but business has since dried up in the relative peace. So when the opportunity for adventure arises, Mason decides to take it. Besides Cowel, Mason has a trusty steed named Steed and an unfinished book by his long vanished father titled Quayle's Guide to Adventures for the Unadventurous.

The going isn't easy and they also stumble upon the answers to questions that Mason has been asking for the last ten years: Where is his father? What was he like? Why didn't he return home? John David Anderson has written a wonderful book. It's one of those rare fantasies that is more about people than plot. It also manages to be both funny and honest. Not honest, in the way of honesty meaning reality, but honest meaning telling this fictional world as it is, unflinchingly.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is having a bad day. Mason and Cowel's three days are undoubtedly worse. If that fact doesn't make you smile, their misadventures will. show less

This was fun to read out loud to my husband. The story seems light-hearted at the beginning, but toward the end it digs deep at what it means to be a hero and to take responsibility for one's actions.

Both funny and thoughtful, but with plenty of bloodshed, vulgar language, and questions of fathers who may or may not be good role models (and with mothers who are definitely not). Probably most appealing to boys age 12-14 who dislike anything 'sissy' but girls will like it too. Probably for kids a little older than his more famous Mrs. Bixby.

Mason Quayle lives with his mother in Darlington, a small city under the protection of the Duke of Darlinger. Life used to be big, bold and exciting in Darlington: back when it was known as Highsmith, the town was home to a multitude of heroes and all of the bustling shops and trades that supported them did a bang-up business. Now, unfortunately, the town has only one resident hero, the Duke, and the lack of customers and exorbitant protection taxes have driven away most of the businesses. Those people that are left live pretty much hand to mouth. Mason is a bard. His father is one of the heroes that went away. Now, when the Duke proves to be a fraud, and swarms of marauding ogres, orcs, goblins, werewolves and other nasties are about show more to swoop down and kill, maim and slaughter, Mason and his friend Cowel are the town's only hope -- they have 4 days to round up a half dozen or so genuine heroes (translation, we can't pay you, but your honor should compel you to come help anyway...) and get them back to Highsmith/Darlington to save what's left of the populace.

Mason and Cowel are quite entertaining. Their adventures, complete with swarming pixies, chafed buttocks, and bullies, are far more realistic than many "hero" tales. It certainly isn't all about the glory! show less

Summary: It's been ten years since all of the heroes packed up and left the town of Darlington, including Mason Quayle's father. Mason lives an unassuming and boring life as a freelance bard, until he stumbles across the information that a band of orcs, goblins, ogres, and trolls are forming up to attack his town. Now he must leave town, armed only with a borrowed sword, a broken-down horse, his best friend Cowel, and a copy of his father's book, Quayle's Guide to Adventures for the Unadventurous, to find some heroes to save his town.

Review: This book is similar in tone to the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede - a tongue-in-cheek inversion of standard fairy-tale conventions. However, this book doesn't quite master the tone, show more lacking some of the charm and some of the humor, and trying to substitute in some overly earnest moral lessons and some "hip" humor in their place. Unfortunately, the elements don't sit quite happily together - with this kind of book, you have to go all way to plant your tongue firmly in cheek for it to be really successful, and Anderson doesn't quite commit. However, Wrede's work is a high bar to be held to, and just because this one doesn't quite reach it does not mean that it was unenjoyable. It's a fun little quest adventure story, with some very amusing elements, and while anyone familiar with this type of book can smell the moral of "what it means to be a hero" coming from a mile off, the process of getting there still makes a good read.

Recommendation: Not the best of its genre, but overall it was a fun, light fantasy read, and not a bad way to spend an afternoon. show less

Mason Quayle is average guy from a time of orcs and goblins. He finds he has no choice but to find a hero to save the town and its people. He and his best friend, Cowel, travel to nearby towns with their less than fast horse, Steed. On the way they make friends and a few enemies, but seem to find no help. They boys tangle with pixies, whatisits, and a werewolf. They are aided by a witch, the daughter of an aged hero, and an inner strength. In the end, broken and down cast, Mason finds that his dad was not the man he imagined and that they could not find the heroes needed to save the town. They go home to pick up the pieces, but discover that we often don't realize the impact we have on others.

Prepare for some guy talk, like mixing snot show more with snail slime and wart crust to make glue. I recomment for ages 10 and up. show less