Roar!

July 15, 2015
Who said St. George had the last word when it comes to dragons? Not Sauer's mite, nor his fire-breathing friends. A ragamuffin makes himself a dragon costume. He may look like one of the lads from Sherwood Forest, but he plays the part of a dragon well. Well...not so much when two real dragons drop by for a visit. "ROAR! Look at me, look at me! I'm a dragon." "No. You're not," says a dragon. Why, I tower over my cat, I'm toothy, I breathe fire, the boy...well...suggests. Take a look, the dragons suggest in return-not at all superior about their talents, but there's no doubting who's a dragon and who's a kid. "Waaaaaaaaahhhh!" wahs the kid, sealing the fact he's no dragon. But look what you can do, the dragons say: play hide-and-seek, turn cartwheels, and eat ice cream (the dragons dismally fail at all these). "Waaaaaaaaahhh!" wah the dragons, jeopardizing their dragon status with all the wahing when it dawns on them what they are missing. No one likes to see dragons cry, so the boy points out their commonalities: they can all make silly and scary faces; they can all do the funky monkey. What more, really, do friends need, other than to share time and do weird things? Friendship can be pretty simple, at least at the start, and Sauer-along with some glittering, inviting artwork from Starin-provides encouragement to jump in, despite the incongruities, maybe even because of them. Bighearted, heart-gladdening, and-best-a light-hearted approach to finding friends. (Picture book. 4-8)

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October 1, 2015

PreS-Gr 1-A young boy, draped in a dragon costume, is convinced he was born to play the part of a dragon. That is, until two actual dragons appear and negate all the ways the boy thinks he fits the bill. He is not big, scary, or fierce enough. The boy's discouragement at this revelation prompts the dragons to point out all the ways that being a boy is cooler than being a dragon, which in turn leaves the dragons discouraged. Will the boy and the dragons ever find common ground? Sketchlike illustrations polished with watercolor make this title vivid while maintaining a childlike, hopeful quality. The resolution is particularly clever and fun. VERDICT A solid purchase for collections needing whimsy, dragons, and friendship-despite-differences tales.-Brittany Staszak, St. Charles Public Library, IL

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