Children’s Dragon Stories

Children’s Picture Book Review – You Don’t Want a Dragon!

YOU DON’T WANT A DRAGON!

Written by Ame Dyckman

Illustrated by Liz Climo

(Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; $17.99, Ages 4-8) 

 

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You Don’t Want a Dragon!, written by Ame Dyckman and illustrated by Liz Climo, is a follow-up to You Don’t Want a Unicorn!, which I haven’t been able to get my hands on during the pandemic. However, as an Ame Dyckman fan, I feel confident recommending both. You Don’t Want a Dragon! is a conversation between the narrator and a child who has just successfully wished for a dragon. And even if you haven’t read the first book, it is quickly clear that this same kid previously wished for a unicorn, and it didn’t go so well. Apparently, the unicorn multiplied until there were many glittery, colorful copies (who make cameo appearances in this book). There also may have been some unicorn poop, which seems to be cupcakes! Now the kid has wished an adorable dragon into his life.

 

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Interior spread from You Don’t Want a Dragon! written by Ame Dyckman and illustrated by Liz Climo, Little Brown BYR ©2020.

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Dyckman’s books are always fun to read aloud. I called the book a “conversation,” but in fact, the youngster in the book doesn’t say anything. Using second person, the narrator addresses, and engages, the main character: “NOW you’ve done it! I TOLD YOU not to wish for a dragon!,” while the boy in the illustrations answers with action. He plays with his new pet through several happy spreads until the dragon starts behaving like a troublesome canine. The narrator warns that he’s also becoming “GINORMOUS … You just don’t have the space for a dragon. In your heart, yes. But in your house … no.”

Climo is a comic artist for The Simpsons and also wrote and illustrated several books before collaborating with Dyckman on You Don’t Want a Unicorn! and You Don’t Want a Dragon!. The kid’s world is drawn in thin outlines filled with gentle colors; the dragon is a soft green with a purple tummy and wings. And don’t forget to note the child’s t-shirt in the cover art. While the illustrations show their kinship with The Simpsons, they are more comfortable than wacky, reminiscent of the Clifford the Big Red Dog books but with more attention to detail and scale. 

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Interior art from You Don’t Want a Dragon! written by Ame Dyckman and illustrated by Liz Climo, Little Brown BYR ©2020.

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I expected to enjoy this book and was not disappointed. There’s lots of Dyckman’s trademark humor, and it fits so well with Climo’s art. For example, Dyckman writes that stories about dragons “never mention … WHERE charcoal comes from. DON’T mention this at your next barbeque.” Climo’s drawing? The dragon sports a toilet-paper-roll bracelet and a proud grin while the kid, wide-eyed, stands next to a grill with flaming briquettes piled high. 

Eventually, the narrator convinces the kid to wish the dragon away. Kids aren’t meant to have magical creatures for pets. “It’s for the best.” You might wonder what the kid will wish for next, except there’s a twist: he finds a completely ordinary pet.

Or does he?

   • Reviewed by Mary Malhotra

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Kids Picture Book Review – Have You Seen My Blankie?

HAVE YOU SEEN MY BLANKIE?
Written by Lucy Rowland
Illustrated by Paula Metcalf
(Nosy Crow; $16.99, Ages 2-5)

 

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Princess Alice always takes her soft, warm and snuggly blankie to bed until one day it goes missing in Have You Seen My Blankie? The picture book, told in rhyme, is written by speech and language therapist Lucy Rowland, with colorful full-page illustrations by Paula Metcalf.

The book opens to Princess Alice’s bedroom with purple walls, a large canopy bed and more toys than most kids would know what to do with. But the toys aren’t as important to Alice as her white and orange blankie she is shown cuddling on her bed. “This blankie was so cuddly! So soft and warm and snuggly!”

 

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HAVE YOU SEEN MY BLANKIE?. Text copyright © 2019 by Lucy Rowland. Illustrations copyright © 2019 by Paula Metcalf. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.

 

“But one day … it went missing!” Metcalf shows Princess Alice searching under her bed, the piano, the couch pillows, and even inside the toilet (she stands on a stool for this drawing!) Each illustration shows her princess crown on top of her head which I found adorable. Princess Alice hurries to the palace door and asks her brother, who is upside down swinging on a tree (but his crown doesn’t slip), “Do you have my blankie, Jack?” Jack explains that after he used her beloved blankie as a curtain, a giant took it from him and wouldn’t give it back! Rowland offers some laugh out loud brother sister dialogue kids will love.

Princess Alice’s search begins as she tracks down Giant Jim who says, “Yes, I had your blankie but I used it as a hankie.” Each illustration depicts beautiful detail of the scene. We know Giant Jim is a chef by the apron he is wearing, and the rolling pin in his hand. His outdoor table is set for tea, and his smile shows the reader he is a nice giant.

 

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HAVE YOU SEEN MY BLANKIE?. Text copyright © 2019 by Lucy Rowland. Illustrations copyright © 2019 by Paula Metcalf. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.

 

Page by page Princess Alice continues her search for her beloved blankie. “But then she saw her blankie with a dragon who looked cranky.” Alice felt a little scared. “That’s my blankie she declared.”

Alice has an idea and works with the dragon to find him a replacement, so he will return her blankie. The detailed drawings and fun rhymes, take the listener into an imaginary world of magical kingdoms, giants and snuggly teddy bears. Princess Alice shows love and compassion for the dragon who took her blankie. Knowing how important it is to sleep with something soft and warm, she wipes away his tears. strokes his head, and promises she will find something that’s just right.

This sweet story teaches children about kindness and compassion, even for someone who may have caused them harm. They’ll be happy when two unlikely characters become friends: ” … inside a royal palace lives a young princess named Alice. And now there is a dragon who will often come to stay!” Have You Seen My Blankie? is a comforting bedtime story for any child who, while still needing a security blanket or stuffed animal to cuddle, will feel reassured to learn that even a big dragon needs a snuggle at bedtime.

  • Reviewed by Ronda Einbinder

Read another picture book review by Ronda here.

 

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Middle Grade Novel Spotlight Post – The Last Dragon by James Riley

THE LAST DRAGON

By James Riley

Book #2 of The Revenge of Magic

(Aladdin; $18.99, Ages 8-12)

The Last Dragon book cover

 

MY TAKE:

Perfect for fans of Dungeons and Dragons and Stranger Things, THE LAST DRAGON went on sale this past Monday, Oct. 8. This is the second novel, which can be read as a standalone, in New York Times bestselling author James Riley’s thrilling new series The Revenge of Magic.

When I read that this particular installment was “packed with mystery, magic, and mayhem sure to keep readers guessing until the very end,” I was intrigued and couldn’t wait to get started. In doing so I was rewarded with an action-packed story that introduced me to likeable and not-so-likeable characters, the Oppenheimer School for magical training, and an assortment of creatures and adventures that kept me turning the pages of this new middle grade fantasy. I don’t often read the second book in a series without having read the first, but was immediately swept into the main character Fort’s quest to rescue his father who had been taken by evil beings called the Old Ones in an attack on the National Mall in D.C.

Once I was eager to know what would happen to Fort and his friends Jia, Rachel, Cyrus and Sierra, I also became invested in the dangerous and risky journey being planned. When a new student, Gabriel, was introduced, I also had to know how he fit into the picture. Would he be a help or hindrance to his roommate, Fort? What did it mean that he too was haunted by nightmares similar to those that Fort kept having?

The novel has some clever scenes where telepathy plays a big role. If I say too much more it will spoil things. Teleporting also features largely in The Last Dragon and the descriptions are fantastic. I almost felt I could do it. And in some scenes, like those in London or New York, I could easily picture everything because of Riley’s deft writing. The way magic is used in this novel not only advances the plot, but feels believable and that matters when myriad novels include magic. There’s humor that tweens will appreciate too. I love how, for example, before Fort sets off to find his father, he makes sure to take a pee stop. A lot of the banter, sometimes sarcastic, sometimes funny, but mostly important, between the friends also feels real.

If your child is interested in an entertaining and super satisfying fantasy that delivers on all fronts, I’d recommend the The Last Dragon, book #2 in the The Revenge of Magic series. Now I just have to go back and read the first book!

 

SUMMARY:

Fort Fitzgerald can’t stop having nightmares about the day his father was taken from him in an attack on Washington, DC. In these dreams, an Old One, an evil beyond comprehension, demands the location of the last dragon. But other than some dragon skeletons dug up with the books of magic on Discovery Day, Fort has never seen a dragon before. Could there still be one left alive?

And weirdly, Fort’s not the only one at the Oppenheimer School having these nightmares. His new roommate, Gabriel, seems to know more than he’s letting on about this dragon as well. And why does everyone at the school seem to do whatever Gabriel says? What’s his secret?

Fort’s going to need the help of his friends Cyrus, Jia, and Rachel, if he’s going to have any chance of keeping the Old Ones from returning to Earth. Unless, the Old Ones offer something Fort could never turn down …

Buy the book from Once Upon A Time bookstore here to support a local independent retailer.

Buy the book from Indie Bound here.

Find out more about The Last Dragon here.

 

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