There will, I think, be inevitable comparisons between this book and “Lord of the Rings” – “Lord of the Rings Lite” perhaps? After all the main villain is named Morgarath (shades of Morgoth and Mordor) and the heroes are the Rangers (as in Aragorn, Halbarad and company). But this book draws its magic realism from a very different source. LOTR is an amazingly complex world complete with histories and geographies. John Flanagan, author of the Ranger’s Apprentice series, does not attempt to flesh out his mythical world too much. Rather, he concentrates on sketching the characters and their environment.

There is Will, the hero of the book and the eponymous “Ranger’s Apprentice”. Will is an orphan and doesn’t even know his own last name. But his father was a hero and so he grows up in the castle of Baron Arald as a ward. Choosing Day comes, when wards in his year are chosen by Craftmasters as apprentices. Will desperately wants to get into Battle School and become a knight like his father, but he is passed over when he is deemed too small.

Just as he thinks he will be condemned to the life of a farmer, a mysterious man steps from the shadows and hands Baron Arald a note that will determine Will’s future. Will is desperately curious to see the note and…well, I’ll not spoil it for you. Suffice it to say that the book is thrilling and you won’t want to put it down (I didn’t), and it comes to a satisfying conclusion that nevertheless leaves you looking forward to the next book in the series. Yes, it’s a children’s book and it is rather straightforward plot-wise but it’s good escapist stuff.