Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsVery Short, Very Brief, Well Drawn Story
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2012
In dragonland there will be a flying competition. Unfortunately, young dragon can't fly so he can't compete. After feeling dejected he asks a bird to teach him how to fly and then quickly masters figure 8s. When the competition comes around he shows everyone how awesomely he can fly figure 8s and wins!
Normally, I don't give away the story, but this book is definitely not for you (if you are reading this review), so we should be good. This book is for very young children who are being read to. My 3 year old loves it, for example. I say definitely not for you because I didn't enjoy reading it. There just isn't much to root for. It's a rushed story, with no perserverance, and little pay off. The young dragon learns to read on one splash page! (Which is like 20% of the book, since it is so short.)
So what has this book got going for it? It looks great. The art is fantastic and colorful. The hardback and cover are very well done and give the impression of richness.
What's wrong with the book? The dragon doesn't learn a lesson; he teaches a lesson. "Take that older dragons who didn't believe in me based on facts, like I couldn't fly" he seems to be saying. It's compressed and over in just a few pages. The listener won't learn any lessons.
Overall, a pretty book with a story that is actually a little off morally that children will enjoy. A very mixed bag.
