The book Uprooted by Naomi Novik seems cliche when you first read it. Plain girl becomes chosen one and must put up with cold, harsh man who actually has a heart of gold. However, some elements of the story were unique and drew the reader in. Agnieszka, a young girl from a mountain village in the shade of a mysterious and dangerous forest, is chosen by the Dragon, a powerful wizard who takes care of the village. The Dragon takes girls into his castle for ten years and then they are let out into the world, often with a large dowry and rich husbands. She goes with him to his tower to be trained in magic. He is a harsh and demanding, not understanding as he should be. She finds a magic book of spells that Agnieszka can easily understand and the Dragon struggles with. The magic forest has animals that takes people and they take a man named Jerzy. He becomes “corrupted,” or possessed by the forest. Agnieszka must go into the village to help him and she stops the corruption from spreading. She then hears that her best friend had been taken by the forest. Agnieszka is able to save her from the forest and cures the corruption in her friend, but her friend is now physically changed. They are commissioned by their prince to find his mother that was taken by the forest. Turns out, after they find his mother, that she was possessed by the forest and she tried to begin a war between the countries. She kills her own son but Agnieszka and the Dragon are able to stop her. Agnieszka cures the forest of the corruption and defeats the queen of the forest who was trying to avenge her family. The Dragon leaves to go save one of the villages affected by the forest. The book ends with the Dragon returning to the village and Agnieszka introducing him to her mother.

The whole book reeks of typical young adult themes. Hostile and borderline abusive man is paired with the plain girl with magical powers. But he was only being that way to save the girls from their horrible fates. The female friendship in it, however, make up for this overused trope. Agnieszka and her best friend, Kasia, will do anything for one another. They address the jealousies that they faced before the events of the book and, rather than growing distant, become closer as a result. They go through so much and keep their friendship intact. Despite the cliche trope, the book becomes engaging and the book is hard to put down. The language is interesting as the book goes on and the twists and turns keeps the reader on their toes. Kind of reminds me of Beauty and the Beast, which gives it points in its favor. Not a bad book really, just with an overused plot and played out characters.