Guardians of Ga'Hoole 02 - The Journey

older brother
    EGLANTINE: Barn Owl, Tyto alba , younger sister
    NOCTUS: Barn Owl, Tyto alba, father
    MARELLA: Barn Owl, Tyto alba, mother
    His family’s nest-maid:
    MRS. PLITHIVER, blind snake

    GYLFIE: Elf Owl, Micrathene whitneyi , from the desert kingdom of Kuneer; snatched when she was three weeksold by St. Aegolius patrols; escaped from St. Aegolius Academy for Orphan Owls; Soren’s best friend
    TWILIGHT: Great Gray Owl, Strix nebulosa , free flyer, orphaned within hours of hatching
    DIGGER: Burrowing Owl, Speotyto cunicularius , from the desert kingdom of Kuneer; lost in desert after attack in which his brother was killed and eaten by owls from St. Aegolius
    BORON: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, the king of Hoole
    BARRAN: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, the queen of Hoole
    MATRON: Short-eared Owl, Asio flammeus , the motherly caretaker at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    STRIX STRUMA: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis , the dignified navigation ryb (teacher) at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    ELVAN: Great Gray Owl, Strix nebulosa , the colliering ryb (teacher) at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    EZYLRYB: Whiskered Screech Owl, Otus trichopsis, the wise weather-interpretation ryb (teacher) at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree; Soren’s mentor
    POOT: Boreal Owl, Aegolius funerus , Ezylryb’s assistant
    BUBO: Great Horned Owl, Bubo virginianus, the blacksmith of the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    MADAME PLONK: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca , the elegant singer of the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    OCTAVIA: Madame Plonk’s blind nest-maid snake
    TRADER MAGS: Magpie, a traveling merchant
    OTULISSA: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis , a student of prestigious lineage at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
    PRIMROSE: Pygmy Owl, Glaucidium gnoma , rescued from a forest fire and brought to the Great Ga’Hoole Tree the night of Soren and his friends’ arrival
    MARTIN: Northern Saw-whet Owl, Aegolius acadicus , rescuedand brought to the Great Ga’Hoole Tree the same night as Primrose
    RUBY: Short-eared Owl, Asio flammeus ; lost her family under mysterious circumstances and was brought to the Great Ga’Hoole Tree

A peek at
THE G UARDIANS of G A ’H OOLE
Book Three: The Rescue

    T he dawn bled into night, faying the darkness, turning the black red, and Soren, with Digger by his side, flew through it.
    “Strange isn’t it, Soren, how even at night the comet makes this color?”
    “I know. And look at those sparks from the tail just below the moon. Great Glaux, even the moon is beginning to look red.” Digger’s voice was quavery with worry.
    “I told you about Octavia. How she thinks it’s an omen, or at least I think she thinks it is, even though she won’t really admit it.”
    “Why won’t she admit it?” Digger asked.
    “I think she’s sensitive about coming from the great North Waters. She says everyone there is very superstitious, but I don’t know, I guess she just thinks the owls here will laugh at her or something. I’m not sure.”
    Suddenly, Soren was experiencing a tight, uncomfortable feeling as he flew. He had never felt uncomfortable flying, even when he was diving into the fringes of forest fires to gather coals on colliering missions. But, indeed, he could almost feel the sparks from that comet’s tail. It was as if they were hot sizzling points pinging off his wings, singeing his flight feathers as the infernos of burning forests never had. He carved a great downward arc in the night to try to escape it. Was he becoming like Octavia? Could he actually feel the comet? Impossible! The comet was hundreds of thousands, millions of leagues away. Now, suddenly, those sparks were turning to glints, sparkling silvery-gray glints. “Flecks! Flecks! Flecks!” he screeched.

The Guardians of Ga’Hoole
    Book One: The Capture
    Book Two: The Journey
    Book Three: The Rescue
    Book Four: The Siege
    Book Five: The Shattering
    Book Six: The Burning
    Book Seven: The Hatchling
    Book Eight: The Outcast
    Book Nine: The First Collier
    Book Ten: The Coming of Hoole
    Book Eleven: To Be a King
    Book Twelve: The Golden Tree
    Book Thirteen: The River of Wind
    Book Fourteen: Exile
    Book Fifteen: The War of the Ember
    A Guide Book to the Great Tree
    Lost Tales of Ga’Hoole

About the Author
    Kathryn Lasky has had a long fascination with owls. Several years ago, she began doing extensive research about these birds and their behaviors. She thought that she would someday write a nonfiction book about owls illustrated with photographs by her husband, Christopher Knight.