Have Sword, Will Travel

by Garth Nix, Sean Williams

Overview

In this “fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek adventure” from New York Times–bestselling authors, best friends journey with a magical sword to save their kingdom (Publishers Weekly).

It is strange enough that Odo and Eleanor have stumbled upon a sword in a dried-up river outside their village. It is even stranger that Odo is able to remove it from where it’s buried. And it’s remarkably strange when the sword starts to talk. Odo and Eleanor have unearthed Biter, a famous fighter from earlier times. By finding Biter, Odo instantly becomes a knight—a role he is exquisitely unsuited for. Eleanor, however, would make a perfect knight—but she’s not the one with the sword. Finding Biter is only the start—boy, girl, and sword must soon go on a quest to save their kingdom from threats in both human and dragon form, in this new fantasy triumph from Garth Nix and Sean Williams.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338158489
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	08/17/2022
Series:	Have Sword, Will Travel
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	206
Sales rank:	836,036
Lexile:	830L (what's this?)
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Garth Nix is the New York Times bestselling author of the Old Kingdom series, a modern classic of fantasy literature that includes the novels Sabriel, Lireal, Abhorsen, and Clariel. He is also the author of The Keys to the Kingdom series, Shade's Children, A Confusion of Princes, Newt's Emerald, and (with Sean Williams) the Troubletwisters series, among other novels. You can find out a whole lot more about him at garthnix.com.
New York Times bestselling author Sean Williams lives in Adelaide, South Australia. He is the author of over 6- published short stories and 22 novels, and has written several novels in the Star Wars universe.
Sean Williams writes for children, young adults, and adults. He is the author of forty novels, ninety short stories, and the odd odd poem, and has also written in universes created by other people, such as those of Star Wars and Doctor Who. His work has won awards, debuted at number one on the New York Times bestseller list, and been translated into numerous languages. His latest novel is Twinmaker, the first in a new series that takes his love affair with the matter transmitter to a whole new level (he just received a PhD on the subject, so don’t get him started).

Read an Excerpt

It is strange enough that Odo and Eleanor have stumbled upon a sword in a dried-up river outside their village. It is even stranger that Odo is able to remove it from where it's buried. And it's REMARKABLY strange when the sword starts to talk.Odo and Eleanor have unearthed Biter, a famous fighter from earlier times. By finding Biter, Odo instantly becomes a knight — a role he is exquisitely unsuited for. Eleanor, however, would make a PERFECT knight — but she's not the one with the sword. Finding Biter is only the start — boy, girl, and sword must soon go on a quest to save their kingdom from threats in both human and dragon form, in this new fantasy triumph from Garth Nix and Sean Williams.

Editorial Reviews

09/11/2017
The discovery of an intelligent enchanted sword offers unexpected adventure for two children. When friends Odo and Eleanor find the sword called Biter, awakening it from a centuries-long slumber in the river, they’re not prepared for what comes next: Biter “claims” Odo as his new owner and dubs him a knight, despite Odo’s reservations and Eleanor’s desire to become a hero. Nevertheless, all three set out to discover why their village’s river threatens to run dry, an adventure that offers ample opportunities to confront evil and hone their skills. Nix and Williams (the Troubletwisters series) offer a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek adventure featuring memorable heroes, an entertaining premise, and not one but two magical swords with way too much personality. “Fine steel such as myself must be cared for and protected,” Biter informs the children. “As well as a scabbard, I will require sandpaper and tung oil, and a sharpening block, and...” (Biter’s dialogue appears in an Old English font, making it read all the more portentously.) It’s a enjoyable spin on the age-old hero’s journey, filled with action and humor. Ages 8–12. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

10/01/2017
Gr 3–6—Nix and Williams twist the standard "quest set in a medievallike European-ish magical world" formula by adding a talking sword and a culture of gender parity. While the talking sword, whose dialogue is rendered in a fancy faux-illuminated font, plays the comic foil (pun intended), it's the female knights that makes this otherwise average adventure stand out. The two protagonists, Odo and Eleanor, a boy and a girl, are merited equal verbiage and heroism throughout. Eleanor wants to be a knight like her mother was. Overall, predictability reigns, as there be dragons, dwarf/elf-like silver-blooded "urthkins," magic stones, wattle-and-daub villages populated with peasants, a wise blind old lady, a creepy forest, and plenty of swordplay. Nix and Williams keep the action going with a good balance between introspection and adventure. Happily, they utterly avoid the cliche of romantic feelings between the two friends. The ending leaves ample room for a sequel. VERDICT This otherwise typical middle grade quest adventure is light, accessible, and, refreshingly, challenges the gender norms of the genre. Lovers of classic fantasy should enjoy this.—Rhona Campbell, Georgetown Day School, Washington, DC

School Library Journal

Narrator Marisa Calin invites listeners on a journey with Odo and Eleanor. The pair find themselves swept up in a quest that involves an enchanted sword named Biter and a knight named Odo. Odo, unlike Eleanor, has no great dreams of knighthood, but it was Odo who pulled the very haughty Biter from the dried-up riverbed, where he had lain for 300 years. Calin effectively portrays how much less certain Odo is than Eleanor in wanting to become a knight and to destroy the land’s most feared dragon. Calin also portrays the increasing determination of the children to complete their task as they encounter seemingly insurmountable obstacles. This charming tale will appeal to kids who like fantasy and medieval stories with a twist. E.J.F. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2018 - AudioFile

Narrator Marisa Calin invites listeners on a journey with Odo and Eleanor. The pair find themselves swept up in a quest that involves an enchanted sword named Biter and a knight named Odo. Odo, unlike Eleanor, has no great dreams of knighthood, but it was Odo who pulled the very haughty Biter from the dried-up riverbed, where he had lain for 300 years. Calin effectively portrays how much less certain Odo is than Eleanor in wanting to become a knight and to destroy the land’s most feared dragon. Calin also portrays the increasing determination of the children to complete their task as they encounter seemingly insurmountable obstacles. This charming tale will appeal to kids who like fantasy and medieval stories with a twist. E.J.F. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2018 - AudioFile

2017-07-17
Two best friends with opposing appetites for adventure are thrust into a crucial quest by a gregarious sword. The once-hearty Silverrun River through Lenburh is steadily running ever lower. As diminutive, feisty Eleanor and her best friend, brawny, bumbling Odo, fish for eels in the muddy trickle, they unearth a sword. After Odo pricks his finger and subsequently bleeds on the blade, the heretofore-slumbering sword wakes up, proclaiming its name (in Gothic type) to be Hildebrand Shining Foebiter (Biter for short) and knighting Sir Odo. Eleanor, whose deceased mother was a knight, is at once thrilled by the enchanted sword and infuriated that she's been designated squire. Assessing the river's pathetic state, Biter pronounces their quest to unblock the river's source. Eleanor is gung-ho, Odo is reluctant, Biter is persistent. The trio bid adieu to Lenburh's bucolic boredom and head toward their fate—which could very well mean death by dragon. In this medievallike fantasy world, gender equality abounds. Like the bulk of medieval European art, however, this cast is white (with the liberal inclusion of female Sirs, it would seem that some black and brown characters could have been included, too). Written by a duo, the narrative is presented from both Eleanor's and Odo's perspectives, although this isn't a he-said, she-said division by chapter; there is a more fluid back and forth. En garde for an implied sequel that is already too bloody far away. (Fantasy. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews