Waking Dragons

by Jane Yolen, Derek Anderson (Illustrator)

Overview

Wake up with a pair of sleepy dragons and the knight who must get them ready for school!

Dragons wake up,
Dragons rise,
Dragons open
Dragon eyes.
From tumbling out of their humongous blankets to devouring a breakfast of catapulted waffles, these characters and their loveable antics fill the pages with luminous color and dragon-size fun. A joyful collaboration between two bestselling talents, author Jane Yolen and illustrator Derek Anderson, this book will make any young reader fly out of bed.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781416990321
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	10/23/2012
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.96(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jane Yolen is an award-winning author who has written more than 380 books for children, including the bestseller How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? and the 1988 Caldecott Medal winner Owl Moon. She is known for her beautiful poetry, picture books, fairy tales, novels, and nonfiction, and has even been called “the Hans Christian Andersen of America” (Newsweek). She lives in Hatfield, Massachusetts. Visit her at JaneYolen.com.

Derek Anderson is the bestselling artist and cocreator of the Little Quack series. He is also the talent behind Gladys Goes Out to Lunch and Over the River: A Turkey’s Tale. He and his wife Cheryl reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Visit him at DerekAnderson.net.

Editorial Reviews

"Anderson’s charming, richly hued illustrations animatedly depict the armor-clad little knight and the cute, expressive dragons’ antics…Droll touches abound in the text, which highlights and celebrates responsibilities, from morning prep to providing transport. This delightful offering interweaves fun fantasy and familiar getting-ready routines in an entertaining, enjoyable read."

Booklist

"With cinematic framing, sculptural shapes, a strong sense of physical comedy, and a fittingly medieval palette of saturated jewel tones, Anderson (the Little Quack series) portrays his horned dragons as hulking slugabeds who morph into surprisingly nimble wingled beasts."

Publishers Weekly

"What a treat when Yolen employs her fantasy-writing talents for the younger set. Anderson’s familiar golden-washed cartoon paintings embellish the humor. Details like a fire extinguisher labeled 'In case of dragon breath,' as well as the dragons’ flying goggles, mean this story’s popularity will spread like fire."

SLJ

"Yolen…keeps the energetic beat throughout. Anderson’s bright acrylic illustrations round out the spare text with many added details and guffaws. Morning-routine stories abound, but for the very young this one bounces with exuberance."

Kirkus Reviews

"Anderson’s charming, richly hued illustrations animatedly depict the armor-clad little knight and the cute, expressive dragons’ antics…Droll touches abound in the text, which highlights and celebrates responsibilities, from morning prep to providing transport. This delightful offering interweaves fun fantasy and familiar getting-ready routines in an entertaining, enjoyable read."

Booklist

"Yolen…keeps the energetic beat throughout. Anderson’s bright acrylic illustrations round out the spare text with many added details and guffaws. Morning-routine stories abound, but for the very young this one bounces with exuberance."

"What a treat when Yolen employs her fantasy-writing talents for the younger set. Anderson’s familiar golden-washed cartoon paintings embellish the humor. Details like a fire extinguisher labeled 'In case of dragon breath,' as well as the dragons’ flying goggles, mean this story’s popularity will spread like fire."

"With cinematic framing, sculptural shapes, a strong sense of physical comedy, and a fittingly medieval palette of saturated jewel tones, Anderson (the Little Quack series) portrays his horned dragons as hulking slugabeds who morph into surprisingly nimble wingled beasts."

"Anderson’s charming, richly hued illustrations animatedly depict the armor-clad little knight and the cute, expressive dragons’ antics…Droll touches abound in the text, which highlights and celebrates responsibilities, from morning prep to providing transport. This delightful offering interweaves fun fantasy and familiar getting-ready routines in an entertaining, enjoyable read."

From the Publisher

Normally you don't want to wake the dragon… But even sleepy dragons need a little bit of prodding to open their eyes in the morning. An eager young knight and his faithful squire-puppy run around the bed, desperately tugging on blankets, dodging fiery yawns and heaving these great beasts off the mattress. Yolen is an expert on dinosaurs' daily activities (How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?, illustrated by Mark Teague, 2000, etc.) and can put monsters to bed (Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters, illustrated by Kelly Murphy, 2011), but what about dragons? Starting simply, with only a few words per page: "Dragons wake up. // Dragons rise. // Dragons open / dragon eyes." Yolen then plays with the scansion, but she keeps the energetic beat throughout. Some rhymes may cause eye-rolling at first ("syrup" and "cheer up," for example) but in the end come across as quite charming. The drippy, syrupy waffles catapulted into the dragons' mouths are too darn adorable to resist. Anderson's bright acrylic illustrations round out the spare text with many added details and guffaws. Tooth brushing, breakfast and other cranky morning chores may have readers guessing that these dragons are off to school, but they have another very important reason for waking up. Morning-routine stories abound, but for the very young this one bounces with exuberance. (Picture book. 2-4)

Kirkus Reviews