ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS: 1. THE VISION AND TRIUMPH OF CHRISTOPHER PAOLINI: BRINGING ERAGON TO THE SCREEN Upon its initial release in hardcover by Knopf in August 2003, the novel Eragon became a worldwide publishing phenomenon... 2. SAPHIRA -THE DRAGON ERAGON's distinguished cast is impressive, but the filmmakers acknowledge the picture's biggest – and most expensive – star is the dragon Saphira... 3. THE BATTLE OF FARTHEN DÛR ERAGON has many grand set pieces, but none as big as The Battle of Farthen Dûr, where Urgals and Galbatorix's elite army attack the Varden stronghold. The battle marks the end of Eragon's journey and the climax of the story... 4. ERAGON CHARACTER PROFILES & GLOSSARY ERAGON, BROM, GALBATORIX, DURZA, AJIHAD, ARYA, MURTAGH, SAPHIRA, and terms: Alagaësia, The Ancient Language, Beor Mountains, Carvahall, Dragon Riders, Gil'ead, Ra'zac, Shade, Spine, Urgals, Varden, Zar'roc... 5. ABOUT THE STORY and characters Eragon takes place in a land called Alagaësia, which is ruled by the despotic king Galbatorix. He was once a Dragon Rider, but went mad after his dragon was killed by Urgals and he was denied another by the council... 6. PAOLINI - THE INCREDIBLE AUTHOR Christopher Paolini began writing Eragon after he graduated high school at the age of 15. The book was first published in 2002 by the author's parents through their small publishing company, Paolini International, LLC. The book was then discovered by Alfred A. Knopf, and was republished under Knopf in 2002...

PAOLINI - THE INCREDIBLE AUTHOR

Eragon is a novel written by Christopher Paolini. It is the first book of the Inheritance Trilogy. The sequel is Eldest, which was released in summer of 2005. The third book has a working title of Inheritance, the release date is summer 2007 . Eragon is set in the fantastical land of Alagaësia, and is a story about dragons. The book has been adapted into a film due for release on December 15, 2006.

Christopher Paolini began writing Eragon after he graduated high school at the age of 15. The book was first published in 2002 by the author's parents through their small publishing company, Paolini International, LLC. The book was then discovered by Alfred A. Knopf, and was republished under Knopf in 2002. With Knopf as the publisher, Eragon became a success and a New York Times Bestseller.

Christopher Paolini

Christopher Paolini (born November 17, 1983) is an American writer of fantasy fiction, best known as being the author of the Inheritance trilogy, which consists of the books Eragon, Eldest, and an as-yet-unreleased third book whose title has not been revealed.

Paolini was born in Southern California, though he was raised and still lives in the Paradise Valley, Montana area. His parents are Kenneth Paolini and Talita Hodgkinson. Paolini is of Italian descent. He has one sister, Angela. Home schooled for his entire life, he graduated high school at the age of 15 through an accredited correspondence course at American School, Chicago, IL. Following graduation, he started work on what would become the novel Eragon and its sequel Eldest, all set in Alagaësia.

Nature influences much of Paolini's writing. In a three-way interview with Philip Pullman and Tamora Pierce, Paolini stated that Paradise Valley is "one of the main sources" of his inspiration. In Eldest Paolini explained that his elves were atheists and vegetarians. When asked if he is a vegetarian, he answered, "No, I am not vegetarian, although I lean in that direction."

In 2002, Eragon was published privately by his parents through Paolini International, LLC. To promote the book, Paolini toured over 135 schools and libraries, discussing reading and writing, all the while dressed in "a medieval costume of red shirt, billowy black pants, lace-up boots, and a jaunty black cap." Paolini created the cover art for the first edition of Eragon, which featured Saphira's eye. He also drew the maps on the inside covers of his books.

During one of his promotional tours, he gave a speech at the school of the stepson of Carl Hiaasen; Hiaasen enjoyed the book so much, he told his publisher, Knopf about it. An offer was made by Knopf for Eragon and the rest of the Inheritance trilogy. The second edition of Eragon was published in August 2003. At the age of nineteen, he became a New York Times bestselling author.

An essay by Paolini appeared in the anthology Guys Write for Guys Read, edited by Jon Scieszka. The book was released in April, 2005.

Eldest, the sequel to Eragon, was released August 23, 2005. In the first edition of Eragon, it was stated that the third book would be titled Empire, but Knopf has the right to change this: therefore the third novel has not had a name officially released. Paolini has stated that the title will not necessarily start with E and contain six letters like the other two.