HERE THERE BE DRAGONS
Illustrated by David Wilgus
Harcourt Brace 1993
ISBN # 0-15-209888-7 Harcourt hardcover
ISBN# 0-15-201705-4 Harcourt paperback
Short stories and poems, all written by me, having to do with dragons. This was the first of the five HERE THERE BE. . .books. Since I'd already written many dragon short stories, I only needed to write one new one--a Chinese dragon story. Included here is "Cockfight," which started the Pit Dragon Trilogy, as well as "Great-Grandfather Dragon's Tale," and "Dragonfield." Each story and poem begins with a short introduction about how it came to be written.
Available in hardcover and paperback.
What reviewers have said: "From the mysterious to the humorous, Yolen offers her own distinctive additions to dragon lore in this enjoyable collection of eight short stories and five poems. She introduces each selection with informal comments on its origin and content. Some of the carefully executed pencil drawings, including the jacket, are particularly effective." -- Horn Book
"Dragon-lovers and maybe even dinophiles will unite to celebrate Yolen's (the Dragon's Blood trilogy) virtuosic poems and stories about dragons." -- Publisher's Weekly
"Here there be dragons, indeed-in original poetry and prose, fiction, and original folklore-a total of five poems and eight stories from the prolific Yolen. Each selection is preceded by a chatty introduction explaining some aspect of where, when, how, or why she wrote it. She has clearly given much thought to dragons, and presents them convincingly from many points of view. "Great-grandfather Dragon's Tale" is a plausible, if revisionist, retelling of the legend of St. George. "The Dragon's Boy" is an episode in the early life of Artos and Merlin in the spirit of T.H. White's The Sword in the Stone. "Cockfight" is a story about Jakkin of Austar IV and his red dragon, which led to Yolen's well-known trilogy of dragon novels. "The King's Dragon" and "One Ox, Two Ox, Three Ox, and the Dragon King" are pieces that have the familiar motifs and rhythmic cadences of authentic folktales, making them good read-aloud choices. There are evil dragons as well as good ones in this collection, and after experiencing their variety and might, readers won't be able to help echoing the author's hope that they will return some day."--School Library Journal
"An entertaining anthology of poetry and short stories, this book will inspire the imagination of youngsters at story hour as well as those of more mature readers. . . .Gorgeous black and white drawings are interspersed amongst the 13 tales." -- http://www.childrenslit.com
Wilgus's full-page illustrations, in soft pencil emulating the effect of lithographs rendered on stone, are especially appealing--beautifully modulated forms, subtle characterizations, classic images of dragons, handsome, formally structured compositions. Inviting."--Kirkus
See the review on the SF Site.
Recording: "Cockfight" originally published in Orson Scott Card's DRAGONS OF LIGHT and now found in my HERE THERE BE DRAGONS, is recorded in an audio book, A DRAGON LOVER'S TREASURY OF THE FANTASTIC, Time Warner AudioBooks, ISBN# 1-57042-136-6.
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