DragonQuest

Gr 1–3—An aging, somewhat comical medieval dragon fighter summons a young boy who is reading DragonQuest to join him in his quest to fight the last dragon. With flowery speech, the old warrior describes the journey to come: "We must pass many perils out there. Awful perils, dangers to set your teeth chattering, to turn your hair white." And at the end of that journey waits "the worst of terrors-green ice gleaming in the [dragon's] eye, claws flashing in the smoky sun, fire curling from its mouth…." The pair travel across deserts, through dark forests, and up steep mountains, all the while managing to escape, outwit, or conquer the dangers from scorpions, snakes, wasps, ghost owls, wolves, goblins, witches, and two-headed trolls. At last, they reach Glass Mountain, the heart of dragon country, and the old warrior is ready to fight. However, after that long, long trek, there seems to be no beast in sight. But then the story takes a humorous twist. The dragon is there all along, hiding in plain sight. Children will enjoy being in on the joke and will appreciate the surprise ending. The not-too-scary goblins, witches, and dragon are rendered in lush, fulsome acrylics and are digitally enhanced. An attractive, easy-to-read addition where there is a demand for picture-book fantasies and adventures.—Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA