A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans
The Dragon's Guide series, Book 1
Laurence Yep & Joanne Ryder, illustrations by Mary GrandPre
Crown
Fiction, CH Fantasy
Themes: Creative Power, Dragons, Fantasy Races, Girl Power, Hidden Worlds, Magic Workers, Shapeshifters, Urban Tales
****+
Description
The dragon Miss Drake has always been fond of pets, and for all the trouble they can get into, humans make interesting (if sadly short-lived) companions. She was still grieving the loss of Fluffy, her latest, when young Winnie finds her. She's dirty, she's rude, and she seems to think that she's the master and Miss Drake is the pet! In short, Winnie the very definition of impossible, but she is Fluffy's relative, so maybe there's potential in the girl. Miss Drake introduces her to the hidden magical community of San Francisco, but an innocent gift turns into lots of trouble for the both of them, trouble that could threaten everyone in the city.
Review
I wanted a quick, light read after over a thousand pages of Cervantes, and I found this in the clearance section at Half Price Books. The story starts quickly, as Miss Drake's mourning of Fluffy (ridiculously known as "Abigail" to humans) is interrupted by the arrival of Winnie and her mother at the mansion where she lives, an inauspicious meeting as the girl barges in, tracks dirt all over the priceless carpet, and declares how disappointed she is that a dragon rests on a couch instead of a pile of treasure. But the two have more in common than it first seems, as both are dealing with recent grief. Throughout the story, Miss Drake must come to terms with the notion of a human as friend rather than pet, just as Winnie has to grow up a little and help fix a problem she inadvertently created; the two make an unexpectedly balanced team. The world is light and whimsical and sure to delight younger readers (and older ones who don't pry too much at edges or try poking logic holes in the story's wings; this is a children's book, after all, having just enough infrastructure for a slightly perilous adventure, brought to life by GrandPre's illustrations.) Once in a while the characters seem to forget things they just learned, the modern elements felt slightly shoehorned in at times, and a couple elements felt forgotten by the end, but this is book one of a series; though the story wraps up neatly here, I expect more comes of those dangling threads in future books. The conclusion is nicely heartwarming as both characters finally find a way to deal with lingering grief. It's a fun story with enjoyable characters and a dragon-sized heart.