About the Author

Geoffrey Hayes wrote and illustrated more than forty children's books, including the popular series of Otto and Uncle Tooth mysteries (Step into Reading), the beloved Bear By Himself, and the Patrick Bear books. In 2010 Geoffrey received the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for Benny and Penny in the Big No-No.

Reviews

"Punchy dialogue and compact sentences should make this a read-aloud delight."—Publishers Weekly

"Part-slapstick, part-fairy tale, the gently humorous plot has enough twists and turns to keep newly independent readers engaged."—School Library Journal

"Designed to encourage confident reading....New readers will love the humorous pictures and stay for the engaging tale." —Kirkus Reviews

K-Gr 2-A young dragon's parents send him off to make his way in the world with advice on how to be a good dragon: "Rum amok. Eat People. Roar. Breathe fire. Act scary." But none of this comes naturally to Fred; despite his scary red eyes, each of his well-meaning attempts fizzles. Having eaten several folks he's met along the way (including a princess and a frog chef), he develops a major bellyache and enlists the help of a giant, a witch, and a shepherd to extricate them. When all of the characters are themselves again, the princess asks Fred to become her palace's House Dragon-no fire-breathing required-a position for which he is happily suited. Entertaining black-line and colored pencil cartoon drawings enliven this Kuklapolitan-esque cast. Part-slapstick, part-fairy tale, the gently humorous plot has enough twists and turns to keep newly independent readers engaged.-Kathleen Finn, St. Francis Xavier School, Winooski, VT (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

"Punchy dialogue and compact sentences should make this a read-aloud delight."-Publishers Weekly

"Part-slapstick, part-fairy tale, the gently humorous plot has enough twists and turns to keep newly independent readers engaged."-School Library Journal