Dragon Girl: The Secret Valley
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
"Weigel has created a compulsively likable heroine who seamlessly blends her strength and compassion, reminiscent of Ben Hatke's Zita the Spacegirl. With lovable dragons, flying ships and danger around every corner, this delightful fantasy doesn't disappoint." --Kirkus Reviews
"A lively yarn whose only fault is that it's over too soon." --Publishers Weekly
Eleven-year-old Alanna and her older brother Hamel are orphans and doing their best to take care of each other until one day Alanna stumbles upon a cave full of dragon eggs. When the eggs hatch with no mother dragon in sight, Alanna decides to take care of the babies herself, even creating a clever costume so that the babies think she, too, is a dragon. With their large appetites and accidental fire burps, Alanna learns that dragon babies are hard work! And when a mama dragon finally comes to claim the babies, Alanna’s costume is so convincing that she is swept along for the ride as they journey to Dragon Rock, a mysterious magnetic force that draws dragons of all shapes and sizes to a magical, untouched valley.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Weigel, who has tackled superheroes (Atomic Ace ), the high seas (Thunder from the Sea), and monsters (The Monster Alphabet) in previous books, sets his sights on dragons for this genre adventure, employing detailed b&w inkwork and throwback storytelling to create a lively yarn whose only fault is that it's over too soon. Even for an animal lover like Alanna, adopting a litter of baby dragons probably isn't a good idea, especially when everyone else in the world would sooner see them extinct. But Alanna, an orphan herself, bucks the protests of her older brother, Hamel, and decides to play mother to the newborn dragons, even fashioning a homemade dragon costume from his blacksmith equipment ("This fireproof cloth we use for Hamel's aprons will be perfect," Alanna thinks to herself). Not surprisingly, the situation quickly escalates, and soon Alanna, Hamel, and dragon hunter Sir Cedric end up in a cloistered dragon sanctuary, each with their own conflicting ambitions. Alanna's ingenuity, daring, warmth, and sense of humor make the prospect of future adventures a welcome one. Ages 7 12.
