Laura Gallego García’s magical, mystical story is about fate, choice, redemption, and the power of love in many forms. Set in long ago Arabia, when “anything was possible,” it tells of a prince named Walid who aspires to be a great poet. Despite his talent, Walid loses a local poetry competition to a carpetmaker, whose gifts are matched by his humility. Consumed by revenge, when Walid becomes king he refuses to let the carpetmaker return to his family until he has completed seemingly impossible tasks, including the creation of a rug that encompasses all of human history and knowledge. Amazingly, the carpetmaker succeeds, but then dies, his mind and body destroyed by the effort. When the extraordinary carpet is stolen, an obsessed Walid abandons his kingdom to search for it. But as he travels the deserts and cities of Arabia, his perspective begins to change. Three times on his journeys, he is saved from death by the kindness of others. And each time, the identity of his savior illuminates the far-reaching implications of his own cruel behavior in the past. What is fate telling him? Walid can’t undo the terrible things he did, but can he make decisions now that will serve the future better than he served the past? (Ages 11–14)

A prince with more power than heart ... a poet who may be mad ... and a carpet containing all of human history combine in this brilliant new fantasy by one of Spain's brightest young writers.
Walid was a model prince: handsome, intelligent, skilled in the arts of warfare and poetry. But the kingdom boasted one greater poet than he, and out of jealousy Walid cursed the man to create an impossible work of art: a carpet showing the history of the entire human race. The poet died weaving it. Men went mad seeing it. And when it is stolen, Walid discovers his life's quest: to recover the carpet and earn forgiveness for his mistakes. Inspired by the story of a real king of pre-Muslim Arabia, LEGEND is a magical fantasy, a meditation on destiny, and an utterly thrilling adventure.