13 great kids’ books featuring fantastic dragons
A child's first word should be "Dracaris"!
From the red seven-headed monstrosity in the Bible to the fire-breathing trio from Game of Thrones, humanity has been obsessed with dragons for as long as we’ve been telling stories. With these books, even kids can feel the fire! Here are 13 great kids’ books with dragons.
1. The Tales of Earthsea
The Tales of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin is one of the finest fantasy stories ever told, an anthology beloved by both children and adults the world over. The first novel in the series, A Wizard of Earthsea, tells of the tale of a sorcerer and his many adventures, one of which involves a certain species of fantastic and fire-breathing reptiles. I’ll give you three guesses.
2. How To Train Your Dragon
Before it was adapted into one of the greatest kids’ movies of all time, Cressida Cowell’s How To Train Your Dragon was an equally delightful story of dragons and Vikings! Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is the shy son of a fearsome warlord who defies the age-old adage “Don’t go near dragons, they’ll kill you” and decides to befriend one, leading to a world-changing understanding between humans and dragonkind!
3. Saint George and The Dragon
Saint George and The Dragon is one of the most beautifully drawn children’s stories on the market. It’s the tale of Saint George, a mythical knight and hero who did battle with a seemingly invincible dragon and WON. It unfolds like a fairytale and is the ultimate story of good triumphing over evil. Sorry dragon lovers, this dragon is kind of a jerk.
4. Eragon
Christopher Paolini’s Eragon will go down in history as a modern fable. It’s a fairytale epic about a poor farm boy who finds a mysterious-looking stone in the forest behind his home. Spoiler alert: it isn’t a rock. It’s a dragon egg! After the egg hatches, his new little reptile friend might just help him save the Empire he calls home, or destroy it.
5. Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons
Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons makes Charles Darwin’s The Origin of the Species look like trite drivel! Taken from the writings of nineteenth-century dragonologist Dr. Ernest Drake, The Complete Book of Dragons separates fact from fiction and studies dragons through the lens of science. How do they breathe fire? How do they fly? Will they eat you or lead you to fabulous treasure? All these scientific queries, and more, are answered.
6. The Hobbit
Before author J.R.R. Tolkien created a modern-day epic with The Lord of The Rings, he created a fairytale-esque prequel called The Hobbit. The adventure concerns Frodo Baggins’ uncle Bilbo, who in his middle age journeyed to the Misty Mountains with a group of dwarves to rob some fabulous treasure right out from under the fire-breathing nose of the wicked dragon Smaug. Go ahead Bilbo, get your bag.
7. Attack of the Underwear Dragon
Attack of the Underwear Dragon is the story of a young Assistant Knight named Cole (basically a squire with a more impressive job title). He assists Sir Percival, Knight of King Arthur’s Round Table. Sir Percival is the definition of gallantry … unless the Underwear Dragon rears its ugly head, then Percy turns tale. When the dragon shows up and ol’ Percival does just that, it’ll be up to Cole to placate the scantily clad beast.
8. Wings of Fire
Wings of Fire is a middle-grade reader fantasy novel focused entirely on dragons! Young dragon Clay and his four friends were raised by a group of dragons known as The Talons of Peace to bring a raging war between dragons to an end. But do these sheltered children of prophecy really have what it takes? They’ll find out.
9. Star Life Keepers
Star Life Keepers is a fantasy sci-fi romp about a group of kids whose attempt at time travel causes them to accidentally end up in a parallel universe. Now in the universe of Belacamber, the kids join forces with local youngsters to become the Star Life Keepers, a group of warriors who protect the galaxies from evil! Where are the dragons? Some of the Star Life Keepers can turn into these awesome beasts!
10. Dragons, Dragons
Dragons, Dragons by Eric Carle is a compendium of mythological beasties from folklore the world over, illustrated in Very Hungry Caterpillar style. Centaurs from Greek myth, bunyips from Aboriginal Australian folklore, and of course, dragons, all make their appearances. The book also features loving poetical odes penned to the beasts from authors across the globe!
11. Dragons Love Tacos
Dragons Love Tacos is the illustrated tale of dragons and their little-known penchant for Mexican cuisine. Written by children’s book authors Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmier, this illustrated classic in the making will show you just how much dragons love tacos. Beef. Fish. Chicken. Big ones. Little ones. They’re not picky.
12. Sir Cedric and the Fire Farting Dragon
Sir Cedric and the Fire Farting Dragon is a young reader book about the gallant Sir Cedric and his battle against a particularly flatulent dragon specimen. How will Sir Cedric ever defeat the beast? I’ve heard that the surefire way to best a regular dragon is to sneak up behind them and go for their soft underbelly, but that isn’t an option here, for obvious reasons.
13. Dracopedia Field Guide
William O’Connor’s Dracopedia Field Guide is a tale for readers interested in separating dragon fiction from dragon fact. It’s a comprehensive field guide for identifying dragon species the world over, from four-legged true dragons to two-legged wyverns and every other sort of dragon in between. Coatyls, Sea Orcs, Feydragons, fire-breathing Great Dragons, this book has them all. You have to hand it to Mr. O’Connor, the man has risked life and limb for this research. He’s managed not only to record all manner of dragons but also give specific breakdowns of the biology of individual species. Where they live, what they eat, how they behave. Why David Attenborough hasn’t jumped on making this the next edition to Planet Earth I’ll never know.
Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com
