The Ice Dragon

[HexMachina]

I've read it AND the prior version. It is NOT a children's story. It was written for adults. The rape scenes have been edited out and it is being MARKETED to children. But it has nothing to offer them.

I don't care what his Not-a-Blog says. He did not write it for children, and it is not a good book for children. The removal of the explicit rape scenes (from the earlier version) does not make it a children's book. It merely turns it into an adult fantasy that happens to lack explicit rape scenes. Everything else is a cynical marketing ploy.

Take that up with George and his editor then, I'm just pointing out what he says. Its his book after all

[ChillyPolly]

Take that up with George and his editor then,

Why? People are asking about the book, and I am telling them what I know. I don't need permission from George or his editor.

I'm just pointing out what he says. Its his book after all

If his opinion is the only one that counts, then: Yes, it is a children's book; and yes it is part of ASOIAF, and yes you should buy it if you have kids OR of you are an ASOIAF fan. And while you are at it you should buy "The Wit and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister".

Or you can practice "Caveat Emptor".

[ChillyPolly]

Well I've never read it, but there is an ice dragon constellation in the Song of Ice and Fire books.

http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Ice_dragon

Apparently Old Nan used to tell stories involving an ice dragon.

Thanks RumHam.

[willofDorne]

I see a lot of similarties. "The land of always-winter" and "winters growing longer and longer" as the Ice Dragon comes more frequently. But... the winters come once a year, that's pretty explicitly stated in this book. I guess I can see how this dragons lead to magic lead go longer winters and summer could be part of this story...

My feeling is that this story was written into the "Game of Thrones" novels as a way for GRRM to respect his earlier works. It reads well... and doesn't feel like a children's book. So, I think it should be included as a tale told by Nan, who we know has a taste for exaggeration anyways.

[The Snark of Winterfell]

I've read it AND the prior version. It is NOT a children's story. It was written for adults. The rape scenes have been edited out and it is being MARKETED to children. But it has nothing to offer them.

I don't care what his Not-a-Blog says. He did not write it for children, and it is not a good book for children. The removal of the explicit rape scenes (from the earlier version) does not make it a children's book. It merely turns it into an adult fantasy that happens to lack explicit rape scenes. Everything else is a cynical marketing ploy.

Is it worth reading? I don't care about the ties to this story, but does the original read as well as say tPatQ or the RP?

[willofDorne]

Is it worth reading? I don't care about the ties to this story, but does the original read as well as say tPatQ or the RP?

It's easily more entertaining than RP or tPaQ. It doesn't feel like a children's book, and has descriptions of a ton of grievous injuries.

[fuelpagan_tw]

Then why do dragons come from the north?

Ice Dragons come from the North. Fire dragons from the south.

ETA: Are you talking about the blurb in the description about Dragons from the North?

Her uncle and the other Dragon Riders are fighting another faction. They are retreating to the South and being chased by the other Fire Dragons when the Ice Dragon enters the fight.

[ChillyPolly]

Is it worth reading? I don't care about the ties to this story, but does the original read as well as say tPatQ or the RP?

I won't say it is not worth reading. What I will say is that you should definitely not buy a short story marketed as an overpriced children's novel. The story (unexpurgated) can be found in the following anthologies. I don't think the rape scenes add much to the story, but that does not mean I would pay good money to have them removed so I can read it as a standalone "children's" book:

Dragons of Light (1980)

Isaac Asimov's Magical World's of Fantasy #6: Mythical Beasties (1986)

Mythic Beasts (1988)

(These 2 seem to be the same anthology, retitled)

Portraits of his Children (1992)*

GRRM: a RRetrospective *

Dreamsongs: GRRM: a RRetrospective, Vol 1*

(These 2 seem to be the same anthology, retitled)

Wings of Fire (2013)

* The starred items consist entirely of GRRM's short fiction.

[The Kinkslayer]

I won't say it is not worth reading. What I will say is that you should definitely not buy a short story marketed as an overpriced children's novel. The story (unexpurgated) can be found in the following anthologies. I don't think the rape scenes add much to the story, but that does not mean I would pay good money to have them removed so I can read it as a standalone "children's" book:

Dragons of Light (1980)

Isaac Asimov's Magical World's of Fantasy #6: Mythical Beasties (1986)

Mythic Beasts (1988)

(These 2 seem to be the same anthology, retitled)

Portraits of his Children (1992)*

GRRM: a RRetrospective *

Dreamsongs: GRRM: a RRetrospective, Vol 1*

(These 2 seem to be the same anthology, retitled)

Wings of Fire (2013)

* The starred items consist entirely of GRRM's short fiction.

I have only read the non-rapey version. Does that happens when the southron soldiers are running from the northron hordes?

I think that the story may be shoehorned as happening during the age of heros or a few centuries after asoiaf, but I won't believe they are the same universe until old Nan tells the story of a sweet winter child

[Black Crow]

The Ice Dragon story is connected to but not a part of the Song of Ice and Fire. A copy of the original text is currently available [in Britain at least] in volume 1 of a collection of his short stories called Dreamsongs.

As mentioned above this original version is a grown-ups text which includes a nasty gang-rape, but it was written as a stand alone story long before A Game of Thrones and according to GRRM's introduction was inspired by a particularly cold and hard winter at the time.

The connection lies in the fact that when he did come to start writing A Song of Ice and Fire he returned to some of the earlier themes and has incorporated some minor bits and developed others. In other words you can recognise some stuff, but its not the same.

Incidentally, in the general introduction he talks about some of his really early work, heavily influenced among others by Michael Moorcock's Elric stories, featuring a couple of the usual "mismatched" characters, one of whom named R'hllor got himself eaten by a monster.