Summary:
Meghan was just a normal teen living a normal life with her best and only friend Robbie. On the night of Robbie's birthday she is humiliated at school and just wants to have a small party with Robbie. Things change when she learns that her little brother has been kidnapped by the fae and even worse, Robbie is fae. Knowing next to nothing about the fae world, Meghan follows her friend in to save her brother. In the forrest they are attacked by a winter prince named Ash and Meghan learns that Robbie is actually the infamous Puck. After escaping and making it to the Seelie court, Meghan finds out that the king is her father and that is why she was seeing things from the fae world. A celebration is held in which Meghan comes face to face with Ash who is the prince of the visiting winter fae. During the celebration, a dangerous creature attacks both courts and blame is being thrown in her direction. In the confusion, Meghan escapes with a talking cat she befriended named Grimalkin.
They escape back to the human world where Puck joins them as well as eventually Ash. Ash tells Meghan that the Iron King has her little bother, the abomination of the fae world because they all are hurt by iron. After Puck is hurt in a fight, Meghan and Ash have to leave him behind to heal. Their journey into the Iron realm is dangerous for all fae except Meghan who is immune to iron. Once at the castle, Meghan has to fight the Iron king with what little magic she has and defeats him. She takes her brother home and then is forced to return to fae for her crimes.
Meghan was just a normal teen living a normal life with her best and only friend Robbie. On the night of Robbie's birthday she is humiliated at school and just wants to have a small party with Robbie. Things change when she learns that her little brother has been kidnapped by the fae and even worse, Robbie is fae. Knowing next to nothing about the fae world, Meghan follows her friend in to save her brother. In the forrest they are attacked by a winter prince named Ash and Meghan learns that Robbie is actually the infamous Puck. After escaping and making it to the Seelie court, Meghan finds out that the king is her father and that is why she was seeing things from the fae world. A celebration is held in which Meghan comes face to face with Ash who is the prince of the visiting winter fae. During the celebration, a dangerous creature attacks both courts and blame is being thrown in her direction. In the confusion, Meghan escapes with a talking cat she befriended named Grimalkin.
They escape back to the human world where Puck joins them as well as eventually Ash. Ash tells Meghan that the Iron King has her little bother, the abomination of the fae world because they all are hurt by iron. After Puck is hurt in a fight, Meghan and Ash have to leave him behind to heal. Their journey into the Iron realm is dangerous for all fae except Meghan who is immune to iron. Once at the castle, Meghan has to fight the Iron king with what little magic she has and defeats him. She takes her brother home and then is forced to return to fae for her crimes.
Themes:
Family ties cannot be severed - One of Meghan's greatest weaknesses is that she will do anything to save her brother from any harm. She will not give up anything at her brother's expense and often makes foolish decisions because of it.
We choose our families - While the above theme still applies, some of her immediate family was awful to her when she was young, such as her father who left her. She wanted to love her father but she couldn't. Puck is considered family because he was with her all throughout her childhood.
Technology will be our downfall - The enemy kingdom was Iron and represented technology and advancements. The evil king wanted to take over nature and the good king who was overthrown wanted to stay contained. Technology has its place but we shouldn't let it rule us.
Family ties cannot be severed - One of Meghan's greatest weaknesses is that she will do anything to save her brother from any harm. She will not give up anything at her brother's expense and often makes foolish decisions because of it.
We choose our families - While the above theme still applies, some of her immediate family was awful to her when she was young, such as her father who left her. She wanted to love her father but she couldn't. Puck is considered family because he was with her all throughout her childhood.
Technology will be our downfall - The enemy kingdom was Iron and represented technology and advancements. The evil king wanted to take over nature and the good king who was overthrown wanted to stay contained. Technology has its place but we shouldn't let it rule us.
Favorite quote:
"Eventually we will all wither and die in the wasteland of logic and science."
This quote threw me when I first read it. I've heard of technology ruining us but logic I had to think about. This also provides one of the themes for the book about technology ruining us. It's an interesting concept to think about.
"Eventually we will all wither and die in the wasteland of logic and science."
This quote threw me when I first read it. I've heard of technology ruining us but logic I had to think about. This also provides one of the themes for the book about technology ruining us. It's an interesting concept to think about.
Argument:
Kagawa makes an argument about technology and it's effects on our society through her book The Iron King.
Kagawa makes an argument about technology and it's effects on our society through her book The Iron King.
Nature vs Iron
The question of how negatively technology affects us has been discussed more and more as the newest iPhones come out. Julie Kagawa addresses the danger in humanity’s obsession in her book The Iron King. The nature vs iron conflict supports her idea that technology will be our downfall if we let it take over our lives. According to her book, our downfall will start with the younger generation and do some heavy damage to nature, but in moderation it could enhance our lives and keep us safe.
The rising action of the story starts when Meghan’s little brother is kidnapped by the Iron King. If the Iron King represents the totality of technology in human lives, it makes sense that a little boy is the first victim. Each generation is becoming more and more immersed in personal devices and Meghan’s brother represents those that have been born into an iron-soaked culture. Meghan, a teenager, represents the balance between technology and nature, and the fae, who are hundreds to thousands of years old, represent the old generations who want nothing to do with technology. The growth of the Iron realm is directly affected by how much the human realm is active with technology. Kagawa had it growing so fast to reflect how dependent on technology society is becoming, starting with the young generation.
One of the growing concerns of our generation is the wellbeing of the planet we live on. In Kagawa’s book, the Iron realm is taking over the Summer and Winter realms at an alarming pace. Humanity’s addiction to technology is hurting the world around them in two different ways. The first crime is negligence and lack of concern for what is harming nature. Only when Meghan had a personal risk in the destruction, her brother’s well being, did she finally take action against the Iron King. She didn’t see the problem in herself, but she recognized the danger for her little brother. The second crime is how society prioritizes developing the man-made world over the one that is already here. The older generation is especially aware of what is happening to our world. A noteworthy fae commented that “Eventually we will all wither and die in the wasteland of logic and science” (143). Nature keeps us alive, so when it’s gone, all that will be left is regret.
The only thing that Meghan takes to the fae world is a music player. Throughout her journey she uses it to keep herself grounded and motivated. This takes the audience back to the 80’s when walking around with music was a large fraction of what technology was carried around. Before personalized cell phones, one couldn’t carry social media around in their pocket. The original Iron King wanted to keep his realm small and separate and was overthrown by the King that wanted to take over. The original was sympathized with, a victim, a hero. The way that he planned to rule his domain is an argument that technology, in moderation, is good. “I wished that, for once, faery tales – real faery tales, not Disney fairy tales – would have a happy ending” (211). The fact that this story had a miraculously happy ending makes it just that, a fairy tale. The odds of technology creeping to the backburner are very low.
The argument that Kagawa makes is very real and present. Between the romance and family feuds, there is a strong lesson to be learned. The younger generation needs to take control of their future before it’s too late. Technology has its place and it might just be the closet. Unfortunately, I don’t think this faery tale will end happily.
The question of how negatively technology affects us has been discussed more and more as the newest iPhones come out. Julie Kagawa addresses the danger in humanity’s obsession in her book The Iron King. The nature vs iron conflict supports her idea that technology will be our downfall if we let it take over our lives. According to her book, our downfall will start with the younger generation and do some heavy damage to nature, but in moderation it could enhance our lives and keep us safe.
The rising action of the story starts when Meghan’s little brother is kidnapped by the Iron King. If the Iron King represents the totality of technology in human lives, it makes sense that a little boy is the first victim. Each generation is becoming more and more immersed in personal devices and Meghan’s brother represents those that have been born into an iron-soaked culture. Meghan, a teenager, represents the balance between technology and nature, and the fae, who are hundreds to thousands of years old, represent the old generations who want nothing to do with technology. The growth of the Iron realm is directly affected by how much the human realm is active with technology. Kagawa had it growing so fast to reflect how dependent on technology society is becoming, starting with the young generation.
One of the growing concerns of our generation is the wellbeing of the planet we live on. In Kagawa’s book, the Iron realm is taking over the Summer and Winter realms at an alarming pace. Humanity’s addiction to technology is hurting the world around them in two different ways. The first crime is negligence and lack of concern for what is harming nature. Only when Meghan had a personal risk in the destruction, her brother’s well being, did she finally take action against the Iron King. She didn’t see the problem in herself, but she recognized the danger for her little brother. The second crime is how society prioritizes developing the man-made world over the one that is already here. The older generation is especially aware of what is happening to our world. A noteworthy fae commented that “Eventually we will all wither and die in the wasteland of logic and science” (143). Nature keeps us alive, so when it’s gone, all that will be left is regret.
The only thing that Meghan takes to the fae world is a music player. Throughout her journey she uses it to keep herself grounded and motivated. This takes the audience back to the 80’s when walking around with music was a large fraction of what technology was carried around. Before personalized cell phones, one couldn’t carry social media around in their pocket. The original Iron King wanted to keep his realm small and separate and was overthrown by the King that wanted to take over. The original was sympathized with, a victim, a hero. The way that he planned to rule his domain is an argument that technology, in moderation, is good. “I wished that, for once, faery tales – real faery tales, not Disney fairy tales – would have a happy ending” (211). The fact that this story had a miraculously happy ending makes it just that, a fairy tale. The odds of technology creeping to the backburner are very low.
The argument that Kagawa makes is very real and present. Between the romance and family feuds, there is a strong lesson to be learned. The younger generation needs to take control of their future before it’s too late. Technology has its place and it might just be the closet. Unfortunately, I don’t think this faery tale will end happily.