Die Feder eines Greifs is the long-awaited sequel to Dragon Rider, which, after its translation into English in 2004, stayed on the New York Times bestseller list for 78 weeks. Together with the English translation of The Thief Lord / Herr der Diebe, this book was the author’s breakthrough in the English-speaking world.
Die Feder eines Greifs deals with the topic of the protection of endangered species, poaching/animal trading and environmentalism in general, which is a much-debated topic worldwide and one that is close to the author’s heart. Besides that, the novel deals with typical children’s and Young Adult literature topics, such as friendship, family, loyalty, dealing with “the other”, standing up for what is right, truth, and hope. Its focus and settings are international.
Mythical creatures from various mythical traditions are incorporated in this book to fit with and add to the general mythical context of this fantasy novel about a boy and his special relationship with a dragon. While several mythical creatures are just names as part of this general background, griffins, pegasi, and (briefly) a centaur play larger roles.
Pegasi are employed as a species that is much loved and well-known to the young readers of this book. Pegasi here are depicted as an almost extinct species, and it will be obvious to readers of any age why these rare and beautiful flying horses must be saved from extinction, so they are part of the ecological message of the novel and serve as the catalyst that sets the action of the book in motion. The pegasi themselves are depicted here as vulnerable creatures and have a rather inactive role. The three foals are still confined to their eggs and are in great danger and their father is devastated by grief for the death of their mother and with worry for the foals’ safety. In order to distract him from his grief, he is given a job in the border patrol of MÍMAMEIDR, which he fulfills dutifully and efficiently. When Ben’s step-sister runs to him to give him the good news that they have the "sun-feather," he allows her to ride on his back, when he flies to his eggs. He differs from the more active Pegasus of Greek myth with his divine connections, who serves as a carrier of Zeus’ thunderbolts and as the mount of Bellerophon, especially when he fought the Chimaera. However, the reader is aware that A`nemos is somewhat paralyzed by his grief and worry and wonders what he and his foals will do when all has ended well. Pegasi in this novel mostly stand for creatures threatened by extinction and for their great beauty.
The griffins are depicted as awe-inspiring, intelligent, and beautiful, but also very cruel, proud, gold-loving, and corrupt creatures. They are immensely strong and dangerous with their enormous bird beaks, lion-body, and biting snake tails. They are the arch-enemy of dragons because of a legend that says that griffins who drink dragon’s blood will become immortal. On the island where much of the plot of this book is set, the griffins have a strict hierarchy with a leader, Kraa, who does not tolerate any opposition. They build highly decorated nests, use language, and have monkey servants, who depict the griffins’ great deeds in paintings and do their bidding. They trade with poachers, providing them with rare animals in exchange for the gold that griffins love so much. On the other hand, there is Shrii who is openly opposed to Kraa, willing to hear out Ben and his friends, is concerned about the safety of his followers, is brave, but prefers to avoid violence. He is also disinterested in gold or riches and not corrupt. Funke’s griffins are exaggerated versions of ancient depictions of griffins. Ancient griffins are said to dig up gold and guard it, but we do not hear about them being corrupted by gold. They also are known for their great strength, one source even mentioning that they are stronger than dragons (Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana 3.48).
One centaur appears in Die Feder eines Greifs: Tyra Raskerwint, a female centaur. She is very old (but looks ageless) and extremely knowledgeable. She is an old friend of Ben’s step-mother Vita Wiesengrund, with whom she has had many adventures. Vita asks her to come to MÍMAMEIDR to talk to A`nemos, as she also lost a partner and so might be able to help him cope with his grief. She confirms that obtaining a griffin’s ‘sun feather’ is the only way to rescue the pegasus foals but also the great danger of this quest. In her age and wisdom, Raskerwint is like Centaurs in Greek myth, but Funke has made her female. She only has a very short appearance in this book.
Furthermore, a scene in which Twigleg dreams of Ben being ripped limb from limb and him trying to puzzle the pieces together may possibly refer to that at the end of Euripides, Hippolytus and to Pentheus’ fate in Euripides’ Bacchai.
