THE DRAGON'S TOOTHACHE

A resourceful narrator finds a way to alleviate a dragon’s pain.

A child with spiky pigtails, long bangs, and big eyes meets a red dragon crying for help. The child is carrying a bag with many objects that prove useful. The flashlight reveals “an old bone stuck in a broken tooth.” Bravely walking into the dragon’s maw, the child is swallowed and meets a rooster, a dentist, a puppy, a cat, a goat, and a monkey, all of whom have failed to cure the dragon’s toothache. Inventively, the narrator directs the monkey to stand on the goat, the rooster to go on top of the monkey, and so on. Balancing on the very top, the child uses some twine to lasso a tooth and climb out, then helps the others. She extracts the bone, and Dr. Dentist uses clay to cover the tooth. Everyone goes on their way, and after giving the dragon a toothbrush, the junior dental expert goes home to a dinner of well-deserved custard pies. The bright, highly saturated collaged illustrations picture the child in Indian clothing, albeit with a very hip look, but aside from this and the monkey, there is nothing particularly South Asian about this story.

A whimsical quest, pure fun to read aloud, that may even remind kids to brush their teeth.