Dragons Rule, Princesses Drool!

March 1, 2017
Foolish prejudice and Little Rascals-type antics come to an inevitable conclusion in Pippin-Mathur's fantasy realm of dragons and princesses. A dragon is fierce. He lives in a land that is full of rocks and dark with the smoke of frighteningly fiery breath--in a word, wonderful. That is until two princesses--one pale-skinned, the other brown-skinned, and both festooned in tutus and ruffles--invade and begin to change everything. Craggy rocks are covered in flowers, flaming burps are replaced with finery and tea parties, and his fellow dragons are taken by the cuteness and pastels. Desperate to oust the interlopers, the dragon turns to his longtime enemy, a pale-skinned knight, to rid his kingdom of the princesses. But when the knight uses the opportunity to ensnare all the other dragons at once, it is the princesses who come to the rescue, terrifying the knight with an incendiary burp. Seeing the princesses in a new light, the dragon finally embraces their presence and the changes they've brought. Awash in pastels, the illustrations offer bright, dynamic spreads that smoothly employ varying perspectives and pace the momentum of the page turns. With its unimaginative gender opposition, however, the narrative unfortunately fails to match the illustrations' draw for readers--especially for those who already don't find ferocity and flowers to be mutually exclusive. Fun and energy staled by tired tropes. (Picture book. 3-7)

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March 15, 2017
Preschool-G There is a scourge upon the land, in the opinion of one fierce (read: small and plump) dragon. A pair of flouncy princesses have invaded his kingdom and are committing deplorable deeds. The girls have planted flowers everywhere, and his fellow dragons have abandoned their ferocious ways to frolic in tutus, becoming shamelessly (and shamefully) cute. Enough is enough, so the squat red dragon sets off to find a hero to take care of the problem. But when the old knight deploys ye olde dragon net in the grove where the beasts are gathered, the little dragon is left with no choice but to ask the princesses for help. Happily, they are more than up for the task and show everyone that being cute and being fierce aren't mutually exclusive. This silly fairy-tale adventure is a delight from start to finish, and its empowering conclusion is a welcome bonus. Pippin-Mathur's candy-colored watercolor illustrations are gleeful with whimsical touches and guaranteed to elicit laughter from young readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)