The Hero and the Crown
- 246
- Pages
- about 4.5 h
- Reading time
- Newbery Medal
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Our view
Heroic fantasy of the classic kind, “The Hero and the Crown” follows a scorned king’s daughter who becomes the hero her country needs. Some readers find Aerin’s ordeals painful to read and the vocabulary demanding for children. The way the love story is resolved late in the book pleases some and leaves others unconvinced. For those who want tragedy as well as hope in their fantasy, it holds up well.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Hero and the Crown is a fantasy novel written by Robin McKinley and published by Greenwillow Books in 1984. It is the winner of the 1985 Newbery Medal award. This story focuses on "Aerin Dragon-Killer", also known as "Aerin Firehair", the heroine who is introduced as a legendary character in The Blue Sword. The book narrates Aerin's evolution from the shy, retiring daughter of the King of Damar to the heroic queen who protects her people from the demonic Northerners.
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.0 across 118 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 45% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Fantasy average of 8.0. That is how 8.0 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.2 | 10 | 9% |
| Hardcover | 8.0 | 108 | 92% |
Frequently asked
How long is The Hero and the Crown?
It has 246 pages — shorter than 97% of the ranked books in Fantasy.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
The same shelf — Fantasy — and a score of 8.0, the closest to this book.
