by Paula Harrison ; illustrated by Sophy Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 7, 2017
An old-time–y fairy tale for dragon lovers; here’s hoping subsequent volumes offer more meat.
A castle maid hides an injured dragon.
When the staff clears out the deceased king’s belongings, blonde, pale-skinned orphan Sophy finds a bag of strange rocks, one of which magically gives Sophy the ability to communicate with the baby dragon that crash-lands in the orchard. But there’s not much time for Sophy to chat with storm dragon Cloudy—the ill-tempered knight Sir Fitzroy despises magical creatures, and he’s on the prowl, looking for the crashed dragon. After the knight nearly catches them (storm magic and billowing royal underpants in the laundry play a role in their getaway distraction), Sophy and Cloudy steal away to safety and find the magic plant that will heal his wing. Soon, he rejoins his dragon family, and Sophy starts to miss him—but not for long. Harrison’s series opener treads familiar territory, the third-person narration liberally dotted with exclamation marks and the dialogue positively festooned with them. The essential conflict—the adults’ dislike of magical creatures ("I've never liked magical animals. How can you trust a creature that breathes fire or sings to the stars?" the queen complains)—feels wholly plot-driven and fails to give all but the most credulous readers genuine stakes to care about. Williams’ illustrations depict the people with uniformly light skin and the dragon as adorable.
An old-time–y fairy tale for dragon lovers; here’s hoping subsequent volumes offer more meat. (Fantasy. 6-10)Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7608-9
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: Dec. 20, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2017
Share your opinion of this book
More by Paula Harrison
BOOK REVIEW
by Paula Harrison ; illustrated by Jenny Løvlie
by Kevin Sherry ; illustrated by Kevin Sherry ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 30, 2014
Good-hearted fun—great for fans of Kit Feeny and Babymouse.
It’s a Bigfeet family reunion!
Everyone’s favorite frosty, furry cryptid, the yeti, actually has a name: Blizz Richards. From his supersecret HQ in Nepal he keeps in touch with his fellow cryptids, all of whom have sworn an oath to keep themselves hidden. That’s not always easy, especially when there are cryptozoologists, like the nasty (but bumbling) George Vanquist, who are always trying to expose the secretive creatures. Vanquist got a picture of Blizz’s cousin Brian near his home in British Columbia, causing the mortified Brian to disappear entirely. When Blizz receives an invitation to a Bigfeet family reunion in Canada, he calls his buddies Alexander (one of Santa’s elves), Gunthar (a goblin) and Frank the Arctic fox to help him get ready. When they arrive in Canada, Brian is still nowhere to be seen. Can Blizz and his skunk ape and other sasquatch cousins find Brian, have the reunion and evade Vanquist? If anyone can, the Bigfeet clan can. Illustrator Sherry’s first volume in the Yeti Files is a fast and funny graphic-prose tale full of labeled pictures and comic-style panels. Those just starting chapter books may have some trouble with a few big words, but they’ll enjoy the big friendly monsters and immediately ask for the next tale—which looks to be about the Loch Ness monster.
Good-hearted fun—great for fans of Kit Feeny and Babymouse. (Graphic/fantasy hybrid. 7-10)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-55617-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
Share your opinion of this book
More In The Series
by Kevin Sherry ; illustrated by Kevin Sherry
More by Kevin Sherry
BOOK REVIEW
by Kevin Sherry ; illustrated by Kevin Sherry
BOOK REVIEW
by Kevin Sherry ; illustrated by Kevin Sherry with Wes Dzioba
BOOK REVIEW
by Kevin Sherry ; illustrated by Kevin Sherry
by Zetta Elliott ; illustrated by Geneva B ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22, 2019
Despite missteps, this satisfying follow-up will leave readers hoping for more magical adventures with lovable Jax and...
Jaxon and his friends deal with the fallout from the theft of one of the baby dragons in his charge.
As this sequel to Dragons in a Bag (2018) opens, Kavita, the titular dragon thief, introduces elderly Aunty to stolen baby dragon Mo. Thankfully, Aunty knows someone in Queens who can help return Mo to the realm of magic. Meanwhile, and in alternating first-person chapters, Jax is trying to find Kavi and Mo, as Mo’s siblings have grown ill as a result of the separation, as has Ma, Jax’s magical mentor and grandmother figure. Jax again teams up with his best friend and Kavi’s older brother, Vik. A third is added to their crew with “huge” Kenny, “the biggest kid in [their] class.” (Unfortunately, much is made of Kenny’s size, which feels gratuitous and unkind.) Eventually the trio finds Kavi, Aunty, and Mo, who’ve been abducted by a magical con artist. All’s well that ends well when Sis, the powerful guardian of the magic realm, shows up, but readers may wonder why the narrative decides to grapple with her choice not to intervene in injustice in our world. Her argument that human-caused problems are for humans to solve feels undeveloped, especially in the face of a massive injustice like the trans-Atlantic slave trade (mentioned during the climax and at no other point). Jax is black; Vik, Kavi, and Aunty are Indian American (though Aunty has African ancestry as well); and Kenny is white. The rest of the cast is diverse as well.
Despite missteps, this satisfying follow-up will leave readers hoping for more magical adventures with lovable Jax and company. (Urban fantasy. 7-10)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-7049-5
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Share your opinion of this book
More In The Series
by Zetta Elliott ; illustrated by Cherise Harris
by Zetta Elliott ; illustrated by Geneva B
More by Zetta Elliott
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Zetta Elliott ; illustrated by Cherise Harris
BOOK REVIEW
by Zetta Elliott ; illustrated by Loveis Wise
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.