Roar for Dragons
RSSJudy Freeman, Curriculum Connections -- School Library Journal, 09/01/2009
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Listen to Grace Lin introduce and read from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Who does not thrill at the notion of fire-breathing dragons flying overhead, their iridescent scales radiant in the sunlight? If we can’t have dragons in our real world, we can always conjure them up in our mind’s eye, with the help of books and stories. This year I’ve fallen hard for three rousing new middle-grade fiction titles about three very different types of dragons. You’ll want to read these titles aloud and/or link them together in a themed booktalk.
Look at the ebullient cover of Ursula Vernon’s debut graphic novel-ette, Dragonbreath (Dial, 2009; Gr. 2-5), illustrated in black-lined shades of dragony green, and see if you can resist opening this deep-sea adventure about exuberant dragon kid, Danny Dragonbreath. On the back cover, his bespectacled iguana pal Wendall says, in balloon dialogue, “I must take exception to this ‘nerdy’ label that’s been so callously applied to my character,” and Danny replies, “Oh, relax, Wendall. Girls totally dig nerds.” Children who love the passionate pink illustrations, snarky dialogue, and daydreamy adventures in the “Babymouse” series by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm; the easy-to-read, pun-infused, chapter-book appeal of the Megan McDonald’s “Stink” books; and the naïf humor in Jeff Kinney’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” titles are going to feel right at home with this comical buddy book.
It begins with Cap’n Dragonbreath on the deck of the Screamin’ Dingo with his ever-skeptical first mate, Wendall, preparing to attack a merchant ship. “Arr! . . . Run up the Jolly Rancher,” orders the Captain, waving his hook. “I think you mean the Jolly Roger,” Wendell responds. The Captain hears an infernal beeping noise. Where is it coming from? It’s his alarm clock, and it’s time to get up for school. “Unnngggghh,” moans Danny, his pirate dream interrupted.
At breakfast, Danny’s dad urges him to try breathing fire to cook some bacon, but in spite of thinking hot thoughts and gargling with kerosene twice a week, the boy still isn’t able to produce any flames, At the Herpitax-Phibbias School for Reptiles and Amphibians, Danny hands in his science paper on the ocean, the one he spent a whole 15 minutes writing. An ominous note from gecko teacher, Mr. Snaug—“See me after school”—accompanies the big, fat “F” on his report. Then Big Eddy, a Komodo dragon, taunts Danny in the cafeteria and takes his lunch. Could this day get worse? Certainly. Danny has until tomorrow to rewrite his paper, and his teacher expects him to actually learn something about the ocean this time.
Luckily, Danny’s Cousin Edward is a sea serpent who is willing to take Danny and Wendall underwater to experience the ocean firsthand. (Talk about your primary research project!) Down below, their adventures begin; they are chased by a sharp-toothed shark, slimed by a nervous sea cucumber, and squeezed by a giant squid. Readers will digest plenty of ocean facts as they follow the intrepid youngsters. There are many tantalizing threads for teachers to pursue while reading this book, including having students research some of the many creatures the boys encounter. If you are integrating this book into a unit on marine life, get everyone into a watery state of mind with Steve Jenkins’s ravishing nonfiction picture book Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea (Houghton, 2009; Gr. K-6), an exploration of the Pacific Ocean, starting at the surface and descending to the depths of the Marianas Trench, 36,000 feet below.
Meet another ability-impaired dragon in Grace Lin’s captivating novel, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (Little, Brown, 2009; Gr. 2-5), a natural extension of the author’s autobiographical The Year of the Dog (2006) and The Year of the Rat (2008, both Little, Brown). In those books, each chapter of Grace/Pacy's amiable first-person narrative contains a humorous and instructive family anecdote that her storytelling Mom relates about growing up in Taiwan and coming to America. Now Lin continues the storytelling motif with an eloquent fantasy about changing one’s fortune, inspired by the Chinese folktales she read as a child.
Minli, whose name means “quick thinking,” is an adventurous young girl, living in a mud-colored village at the base of Fruitless Mountain, where she and her parents harvest rice. While Minli’s mother sighs and frowns over the inadequacies in her life, and resents her rough clothes, rundown house, and meager meals, her father tells stories. First, Ba recounts the tale of the Jade Dragon, in charge of all the clouds, who grew so angry at the ungrateful people on Earth, she decided to withhold rain. In response to the ensuing misery, the dragon’s four children transformed themselves into four great rivers. Despondent our her loss, the Jade Dragon turned herself into the Jade River, and her broken heart into Fruitless Mountain. “Until Jade Dragon is no longer lonely and reunited with at least one of her children, Fruitless Mountain will remain bare,” Ba says. Minli asks Ba how that might happen, and he tells her, “That is a question you will have to ask the Old Man of the Moon,” the Guardian of the Book of Fortune, who, it is said, lives atop Never-Ending Mountain and can answer any question in the world.
When a stranger appears, selling goldfish that he claims will bring good fortune, Minli impulsively buys one with her two precious copper coins. Ma is angry, and Minli, feeling guilty at bringing home another mouth to feed, frees the goldfish into the Jade River. But what a fish! Instead of swimming away, it speaks to her and tells her how to reach Never-Ending Mountain. Off goes Minli to discover how she might change her family’s fortune. On her very first morning she hears a cry for help and finds, much to her astonishment, a brilliant red dragon, tied up with twine and crying because he can’t escape and, unlike other dragons, he can’t fly, either. She frees him and invites him to join her on her quest. Along the way, the girl outwits monkeys, befriends a boy who cares for a water buffalo, assists a beggar who is really the king, and finds care for the dragon after he is attacked by a green tiger. The short chapters segue between Minli’s encounters and the attempts by her distraught parents to find her. What binds together all of their adventures? Stories. Every character and creature she and the dragon and her parents meet tells thrilling, thoughtful, instructive, and inscrutable tales.
The intricate melding of story threads is well served by the book’s elegant layout and design. Each chapter begins with a color illustration, often within a scalloped border; interspersed throughout the book are eight intricate, lovely colorful paintings, accented in gold, that look like Chinese cloisonné. There are many themes to think about while reading this story, but the ones you’ll want to discuss with your listeners are these: Why did Minli want to change her family’s fortune? Was she successful? How do these character’s lives change? If you met the Old Man of the Moon, what is the one question you would ask him and why? There’s a bibliography of folktale books at the back of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon; Carol Kendall and Li Yao-wen’s Sweet and Sour: Tales from China (Clarion, 1978) is an especially kid-friendly collection for telling and reading aloud.
And, finally, there’s the not-yet fire-breathing or-flying dragon being kept hidden by headstrong Princess Meglynne in Michelle Knudsen’s first novel, The Dragon of Trelian (Candlewick, 2009; Gr. 4-7), a rousing and satisfying tale of political intrigue and magic. It starts with Calen, slacker apprentice to Serek, the castle’s mage, afraid of heights but nervously perched on a window ledge watching the royal procession on the Queen’s Road far below. When he is startled by a voice behind him, he loses his balance and almost falls out of the window. Luckily, he is yanked back into the room by a girl about his age, though he is too angry with her to be properly grateful until she introduces herself. Her name is Meg—actually, it’s Her Royal Highness Princess Meglynne, or, as she describes herself, “ . . . King Tormon’s third and least patient royal daughter.” She’s come to watch the arriving royalty, too, and she points out for Calen the Prince of Kragnir, arriving to marry her beloved sister, Maerlie. Their marriage is to mark the end of a century of war between the two kingdoms. Before she leaves, Meg asks Calen to meet her tomorrow so she can share a secret with him.
Here is a fantasy that hits all the most satisfying notes: two strong-willed teens who don’t listen to their elders or follow the rules; deception, romance, revenge, betrayal, and murder; fortunes told with spirit cards; screaming and scary poisonous monsters; magic and spells of invisibility; and, of course, Meg’s big secret. She’s hiding a rapidly growing young dragon she’s named Jakl in a cave deep in the forest. When Meg and Calen uncover a plot to murder Meg’s sister and plunge the two countries back into war, they must draw on resources they didn’t know they possessed to counter it. Sometimes the plot gets a little Potter-ish, but readers will enjoy the snappy dialogue and the fluid writing and will crave a sequel. Mostly, this is an original, entertaining, and suspenseful nugget with two discrete well-developed main characters—Calen, just beginning to realize and value his magical abilities, and Meg, worried that an expected lifetime of linking with her dragon will compromise her own independence.
43 DRAGON BOOKS I HAVE LOVED
I did a search for dragon books written for children and found more than 300 titles, not even counting all the books that are out of print. That’s a lot of dragons. What I’ve compiled here is a list of my favorite dragon books ever, and yes, some are out-of-print, doggone it, but all are, I think, worth searching out, reading, and sharing with children.
Judy Freeman (www.JudyReadsBooks.com) is the author of Books Kids Will Sit Still For 3 (Libraries Unlimited, 2006), and Once Upon a Time: Using Storytelling, Creative Drama, and Reader's Theater with Children in Grades PreK-6 (2007), winner of the 2009 Anne Izard Storytellers’ Choice Award. Her latest and most exciting project is writing children’s book reviews and other content for author James Patterson’s award-winning Web site for parents, teachers, and librarians: www.ReadKiddoRead.com.
Listen to Grace Lin introduce and read from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
