Firewing facts for kids
Firewing first edition cover.
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| Author | Kenneth Oppel |
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| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Series | Silverwing series |
| Genre | Children's, Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
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Publication date
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April 18, 2002 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 329 pages |
| ISBN | 978-0-00-639194-4 |
| OCLC | 49250078 |
| Preceded by | Sunwing |
| Followed by | Darkwing |
Firewing is an exciting children's book written by the Canadian author, Kenneth Oppel. It is the third book in the popular Silverwing series. This series also includes Silverwing, Sunwing, and the story that happens before them, Darkwing.
Contents
What is Firewing About?
Firewing tells the story of Griffin Silverwing, the son of the famous bat, Shade, and Marina. Griffin is a bit slower and clumsier than other young bats. His only real friend is Luna, a popular newborn bat. Griffin worries that his dad, Shade, might think he's not brave enough.
Griffin's Big Mistake
To prove himself, Griffin tries to take fire from human campers. But something goes wrong, and Luna accidentally gets burned. Feeling terrible, Griffin flies into a hidden crack in Tree Haven. This crack leads to a mysterious underworld. An earthquake makes the crack bigger, and Griffin is pulled into this strange new place, without his family knowing.
Shade's Search for His Son
When Shade can't find Griffin, the older bats give him two days to search the underworld. After that, they plan to seal the crack forever. In the underworld, Griffin finds a colony of bats who don't realize they've passed on. These bats are wary of Griffin because he is still alive, and he seems to glow to them.
Griffin soon discovers that Luna, who recently passed away, is now part of this colony. She doesn't remember him at all. Luckily, a group of "Pilgrims" (bats who know they've passed on) arrive. One of them, Frieda, helps Luna remember Griffin. Frieda tells them about a giant, glowing Tree that supposedly sends bats to a better afterlife. She believes the Tree can send Griffin home because he is still alive. With Frieda's map, Griffin and Luna set off to find the Tree.
Goth's Return
Meanwhile, the evil bat Goth wakes up in the underworld and realizes he's passed on. After some other bats try to make him a slave, Goth demands answers from Zotz, a powerful spirit. Zotz appears and says Goth will be punished for failing him before. Goth then makes a deal: he will get a second chance at life if he can stop Griffin.
Both Shade and Goth are now trying to find Griffin. Goth finds him first, but Griffin, being alive, is stronger and fights him off. Griffin and Luna enter a cave that can make bats remember their past lives. Shade finally finds Griffin and Luna there, but Goth shows up again. Griffin and Luna escape, but Shade gets lost in the cave's river, and Goth is badly hurt.
The Journey to the Tree
Griffin and Luna meet a bat named Dante and a group of bats who say they no longer fear anything. They have chosen to think about deep ideas instead of entering the Tree. Griffin, hurt and tired, argues with Luna. He admits that he caused her injury. But during their struggle, he gets his desire back to find the Tree.
Shade escapes the river but is tricked by Zotz. He hurts Goth's ear, which makes it hard for Goth to use his echolocation (like bat sonar). Zotz then makes Goth look like Shade and tells the real Shade a story about how the underworld and the Tree came to be.
Griffin and Luna finally reach the Tree. But before they can enter, Goth arrives, disguised as Shade. Goth gravely injures Griffin just as Shade and his friends arrive. Shade then gives up his own life force so that both Griffin and Luna can absorb it. They all enter the Tree together.
New Beginnings
The newly reborn Goth finds the ruins of a temple to Zotz and a group of other bats. He begins to teach them his ideas. The newly reborn Griffin and Luna return to Tree Haven and are reunited with Marina. Unknown to them, Shade is also there in a spirit form, joining his spirit with those around him.
Main Characters in Firewing
Griffin
Griffin is the son of Shade and Marina. Because he has a mixed family background, he looks a bit different from other young Silverwing bats. This makes him feel a bit unsure of himself and different from others. He worries a lot, and his imagination often makes him think about the worst possible things. Griffin also fears that his dad, Shade (who is a hero), will think he's a coward.
When he accidentally causes Luna's injury, he ends up pulled into the Underworld. During his journey to the Tree, he becomes much more confident and believes in himself. He is briefly injured by Goth but comes back to life when he absorbs half of Shade's life force. His name comes from the griffin, a mythical creature that is part eagle and part lion, which fits him being a mix of Silverwing and Brightwing.
Luna
Luna is a young Silverwing bat and Griffin's best friend. Unlike Griffin, Luna is brave, daring, and popular with the other young bats. She gets badly burned when Griffin accidentally drops a burning piece of grass on her. Griffin meets her again in the Underworld, and even though she doesn't recognize him at first, he convinces her to fly to the Tree with him.
After realizing she had passed away, Luna feels constant pain from her burns. When Griffin admits it was his fault, Luna gets very upset. But Griffin manages to calm her down, and she apologizes. Even though the Tree looks like it's made of fire (which scares her because of how she passed), she returns to the upper world with Griffin after absorbing half of Shade's life force. Her name is a reference to the Roman goddess of the moon.
Shade
Shade Silverwing is Griffin's father and the main character of Silverwing and Sunwing. When he was young, other bats made fun of him for being small. But he became very skilled at using echolocation, which is like bat sonar. He could even create illusions or move things with his echoes.
In Firewing, Shade comes home to find Griffin lost in the underworld, and he goes to follow him. He eventually reunites with Griffin and Luna. Shade makes it all the way to the Tree, where he gives up his own life force for his son's sake after Griffin is injured by Goth. His name means "darkness".
Goth
Goth is a male bat and the king of the Vampyrum spectrum bats. He is very tricky and cunning. He was taken from his home in the jungle by humans and wants to return. Goth is a meat-eater, which makes the owls angry at Shade. He was injured in Sunwing during an explosion. Goth is ruthless and wants to hurt others. After Shade outsmarted him, Goth made it his personal goal to stop Shade.
Goth comes back to life at the end of Firewing. He disguises himself as Shade and injures Griffin, absorbing his life force. This allows Goth to return to the living world through the Tree. He then reappears at the temple where he was injured. There, he meets a group of Vampyrum bats and begins to teach them about Cama Zotz. His name comes from the English word gothic.
