content: Ok, so its obvious Paolini was a Tolkien fan, and his descriptions of elves and dwarves come right out of middle earth, but I couldn't help it, I liked his story. As it progressed, I found myself checking his map and seeing exactly where his characters where and where they were going and I was hooked. Although I could tell a teenager, albeit a talented one, wrote this book, I thought Paolini's writing and plot got more polished the more I got into it. I'll be reading the next one for sure, and I'm not even a kid, just a middle aged housewife. I am sure any young reader would love this story!