The Reluctant Dragon

by Robert D. San Souci, John Segal (Illustrator)

San Souci and Segal pair up in this clever, funny retelling of Kenneth Grahame's THE RELUCTANT DRAGON which includes miniature illustrations throughout.

When Jack's father discovers a fire-breathing dragon living close to home, Jack tells everyone not to worry -- he has read a lot about dragons. The next day, Jack meets him and learns that he is poet who would rather write than fight knights and breathe fire. Soon Jack and the dragon are sharing poetry and singing songs, but Jack can't keep him a secret for long. One day, Saint George rides into town to slay the beast, but the dragon refuses to take part in something so uncivilized. So with the help of Jack, they agree to stage a mock battle which turns out to be a hit.

Genres: Picture Books, Dragons, Fantasy, Childrens, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2004

About the author

Robert Daniel San Souci (October 10, 1946 – December 19, 2014) was a multiple award-winning children's book author, who resided in San Francisco, California. He often worked with his brother, Daniel San Souci, a children's book illustrator. He was a consultant to Disney Studios and was instrumental in the production of the film Mulan, for which he wrote the story. He studied folklore in graduate school. He died after suffering a head injury while falling from a high height in San Francisco in December 2014. He was only 68 years old.

Reviews

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The smallish illustrations were odd, but the tale itself is an utter delight.

[Cheryl · Rating 1 out of 5]

No, dammit. Read the original. The Reluctant Dragon is a particularly nice one. All this does is remove the wit; it doesn't make it any more clever or heartwarming or easy to understand or anything.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never read the original, so I don't know how it compares, but I did wonder why it needed to be "retold."

I enjoyed the story. The art is good but I think bigger pictures would be better. The detail is lost.

[Christy Broderick⁷ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute retelling of the original. Loved the mini illustrations ☺️

[Becca Kostick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taking us back to England, long ago, a shepherd, his wife and their son lived in a cottage. The shepherd had spent his time in high meadows and his son spent most of his time reading natural history and fairy tale books. One night, the shepherd had gathered his family and told them that he may not take the sheep to the hills where they grazed anymore because of the cave at the meadow's end. This cave was giving off noises from deep inside for days and on this particular day, he had saw what actually caused those noises. Through the story, the Jack, the son, had used the knowledge he had from the books he read and tries to befriend the dragon. Jack introduces his new friend, the dragon, to his mother and father. They all gathered around the dragon and listened to his stories, keeping him a secret so no one else in the village will know. But soon, townsfolk caught word that there was a dragon in town and cried, "The dreadful beast must be destroyed!" No one was willing to take the monster down, so the dragon was left alone. Throughout the story, the dragon meets a Saint, who will act as if he is defeating the dragon so then the townsfolk will end up liking the dragon. After the Saint has defeated the dragon, they work together to get the townsfolk on his side. It ends as a happy ending, but you will have to read it to find out what exactly happens in The Reluctant Dragon.

This story is on my favorites shelf because of how cute it is! Although it is mainly written for the primary grades, this fairy tale book can easily be used in both primary and intermediate grades. When used in the primary grades in the classroom, students can look at the different story elements (plot, setting, characters, problem, and solution) and take each element from the story to support what makes it those. When used in intermediate grade classrooms, students can use this as a building block as to learning how to write stories, how to incorporate all of the different story elements, and creating a story of their own which could be identical or completely different, depending on the direction of the teacher. This is such an adorable book, and I definitely think that everyone should read it at one point or another!

[Jacob]

The Reluctant Dragon (2004). Written by Kenneth Grahame. Retold by Robert San Souci. Illustrated by John Segal. This classic fantasy story describes a relationship between a young boy named Jack and a friendly dragon. Unlike other dragons, Jack's new friend is a kind and nonviolent companion who enjoys reading and writing poems. Although Jack and his family grow fondly over the dragon, a local knight named Saint George is set out slay the magnificent beast. Fortunately, Jack and the dragon convince Saint George that there is no reason to be afraid. Once Saint George meets the dragon, he decides to stage a pretend fight to please the townsfolk and persuade them to see the dragon as a tamed beast. This fantasy story presents the message of "do not judge a book by its cover." This story resembles a similar message conveyed in the popular animated film known as How to Train Your Dragon. John Segal illustrates more than sixty miniature paintings that are both simple and complementary to the written narrative. Target audience: ages 6-9.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids (9, 7, 5) thought this was funny, but the concept was a bit lost on the youngest (5). The dragon is not into what dragons usually like. He is peaceable and reasonable. A boy is brave enough to get to know the dragon without prejudice and makes a life-long friend. His parents are wise enough to trust the boy and the dragon becomes a friend to the family. Trouble arises when the locals call in Saint George to slay the dragon. Fortunately the boy is able to talk sense into Saint George and they formulate a plan to please everyone. The gullible townspeople are duped and all the characters come out ahead. You could really hit the moral strongly by pointing out that the smartest characters didn't act with prejudice but with caution and trust. They bettered their lives and gained more than they would have otherwise.

AR level: 4.9
Point value: 0.5

[Joanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack is concerned when the village demands the town dragon, who is friendly, kind and enjoys poem-writing, to be killed. He enlists the help of Saint George, and they devise a plan to tame the "evil" dragon so that all can live in peace.

I really enjoyed this tale; it is a retelling of an old story, but one that I had never heard before. I liked that the dragon is friendly, and the happy ending is satisfying.

The illustrations are quite small and the text quite lengthy, so this is a book best enjoyed curled up in bed with an adult reading to child.

[Mary Jo Richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderfully humorous book about a pacifist dragon who must confront the ultimate dragon killer, St. George. Fortunately, there's a happy ending to the tale. The language of this text is rather complex for a picture book, so it seems that it's intended for an adult to read to a child. Because it's humor is rather mature, it's one of those great books that operates on more than just one level do that the adult and child readers can appreciate it equally.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

The text was well retold, but I found the illustrations distracting. The mixture of pictures with comic book-like vignettes interrupted the pace of the story for me.

[Debrarian]

mini watercolors by John Segal

[Jaq · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely story, really enjoyable.