In [Dragonsinger,] the inferior sequel to Dragonsong, Menolly begins her apprenticeship in music at the Harper Craft Hall…. Set on the planet of Pern, the book reads like a first-week-at-school story, as Menolly copes with demanding teachers, jealous girl students, and envious boy apprentices. There isn't much plot, and little suspense, as Menolly's attempts to prove herself are aided and abetted by her supporting superiors and the personable fire lizards. The most interesting chapters deal with Menolly's training in musicianship, knowledgeable passages on the copying of music and the making of instruments. Though self-contained, the book depends for its flavor on the first volume, a better written book in every way.

Ruth M. Stein, "'Dragonsinger'," in Language Arts (copyright © 1977 by the National Council of Teachers of English; reprinted by permission of the publisher and the author), Vol. 54, No. 7, October, 1977, p. 807.