Jousting with Jesters: An ABC for the Younger Dragon

This is a dandy little book - it follows a young dragon from his birth through to getting his flame, his wings, and his place in life. Little Dennis pops out of the egg and then travels on a quest though a magical medieval English landscape - a trip that also takes him through the seasons and the alphabet. The metaphor of acquiring knowledge, skill and growth as he travels through the letters A to Z may not be "got" by the young reader but it's a sure a nice subtext that parents or grandparents can appreciate as they read to their own little ones. Like Peter Pan and Wind in the Willows it's got 2 levels - one for the adults, one for the kids. I found the kids really liked the colourful and detailed illustrations and loved searching for the items in each picture that begin with the letter they're on (I did too!), and of course there's always the "bad guy" to find peeping out. Makes learning fun. Clever alliterations. Who knew you had to Manage Magicians with Marmalade?

What a wonderful book! My kids absolutely loved it, and I have to say I'm quite partial to it myself. This is the A-Z story of Dennis the Dragon, and his quest to find his flame and return to Castle Yarrow as a full-grown, fire-breathing dragon. From "Avoid aunties armed with arrows" to "As Auntie always says, 'Zoom with Zest!'," this is an alphabet-filled picture book with amazing illustrations and entertaining anecdotes. As a bonus, kids can search each page for objects that begin with the letter of that particular page's storyline. A great bedtime book, or one for anytime! Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"