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The Dragon of Og
A battle of wits begins between a luck-bringing dragon, who had always been given two bullocks a month from the old lord's herd, and the new lord, who wants to change things
61 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1981
2 people are currently reading
155 people want to read
About the author
Rumer Godden
152 books552 followersMargaret Rumer Godden was an English author of more than 60 fiction and non-fiction books. Nine of her works have been made into films, most notably Black Narcissus in 1947 and The River in 1951.
A few of her works were co-written with her elder sister, novelist Jon Godden, including Two Under the Indian Sun, a memoir of the Goddens' childhood in a region of India now part of Bangladesh.
A few of her works were co-written with her elder sister, novelist Jon Godden, including Two Under the Indian Sun, a memoir of the Goddens' childhood in a region of India now part of Bangladesh.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
June 2, 2022
Rumer Godden has been on my list of authors to read for years, but somehow, she never made it to the top of the the TBR pile. I was searching for something quick to read, and The Dragon of Og's spine looked sufficiently skinny. Not a particularly fool-proof method of picking a book, but it ended up working out fabulously this time around. The Dragon of Og is a delightful little dragon story--featuring a lonely, peaceful dragon, a compassionate lady, and her stubborn lout of a husband. The story is straightforward, but beautifully told, with just a hint of humor.
March 5, 2025
I thrifted this promising-looking book nearly ten years ago, thinking that a collaboration between Rumer Godden and Pauline Baynes with a medieval setting would probably be a gem.
Now that I've read it, I would, alas, not call it a gem—though the illustrations are completely lovely and the story held my children's interest well enough. It's the tale of friendship between a sympathetic, nicer-than-usual dragon and a forward-thinking aristocratic lady. Unfortunately, the Lady Matilda, despite her enlightened impulses and frenchified tastes, is married to a backward clod of a chieftain who insists upon killing the dragon.
The story is supposed to be a lighthearted reimagining of folklore, but Joseph and I found it somewhat tawdry. We could have forgiven the (by now overdone, perhaps in 1981 less overdone) motif of the kind-hearted monster. What turned us off was the constant pitting of innovative Matilda against oafish Angus Og. Everything Matilda does is wise and sensible; everything Angus Og does is vulgar and stupid. Her introduction of modern comforts—privies, gardens, tapestries—to the castle is told for laughs: How funny those Scottish people were with their primitive ways before the Norman influence came to show them what comfort and cleanliness were! This sort of progressive narrative and dismissal of culture and disdain for the early Middle Ages ruined the book for us; the good aspects weren't good enough to redeem it.
Now that I've read it, I would, alas, not call it a gem—though the illustrations are completely lovely and the story held my children's interest well enough. It's the tale of friendship between a sympathetic, nicer-than-usual dragon and a forward-thinking aristocratic lady. Unfortunately, the Lady Matilda, despite her enlightened impulses and frenchified tastes, is married to a backward clod of a chieftain who insists upon killing the dragon.
The story is supposed to be a lighthearted reimagining of folklore, but Joseph and I found it somewhat tawdry. We could have forgiven the (by now overdone, perhaps in 1981 less overdone) motif of the kind-hearted monster. What turned us off was the constant pitting of innovative Matilda against oafish Angus Og. Everything Matilda does is wise and sensible; everything Angus Og does is vulgar and stupid. Her introduction of modern comforts—privies, gardens, tapestries—to the castle is told for laughs: How funny those Scottish people were with their primitive ways before the Norman influence came to show them what comfort and cleanliness were! This sort of progressive narrative and dismissal of culture and disdain for the early Middle Ages ruined the book for us; the good aspects weren't good enough to redeem it.
November 13, 2013
In case you've missed my other comments about Rumer Godden's childrens' books, here are the basics. I love her children's books just as much as her novels for adults. Godden has a knack for incorporating local culture, awkward and unappreciated people, and interesting plot with a lovely prose style. She is unafraid to have her characters behave naturally which means that a story's crisis points will often leave readers feeling very uncomfortable because they recognize the behavior so well and dread the consequences thereof. Godden also is good at avoiding the "nice" sentimentality which can pervade children's books. Her world is always very real.
This was my favorite of the gaggle of Godden's children books I picked up from the library last night. It is based on a local legend but Godden does a wonderful job of turning it into a story where we care about all the characters. Even Angus Og, that short-sighted fellow.
This was my favorite of the gaggle of Godden's children books I picked up from the library last night. It is based on a local legend but Godden does a wonderful job of turning it into a story where we care about all the characters. Even Angus Og, that short-sighted fellow.
October 22, 2018
Based on an old legend of the Scottish Lowlands, The Dragon of Og tells a story of the last of dragons who, left to grow on his own by his kind mother and eager Uncle, lives a solitary and quiet life under the hillside and within the pool of the land belonging to Lord of Tundergarth. But dragons live very long lives and when a new Lord comes from a different kingdom and takes the land he hears of the dragon and wishes it killed. Only his dear wife, Matilda understands its importance...
This is a sweet tale and one which would be well shared on a more intimate one-to-one level. The dragon is sweet and innocent unlike the rather cantankerous Angus Og. Pauline Baynes' illustrations throughout are an absolute delight.
This is a sweet tale and one which would be well shared on a more intimate one-to-one level. The dragon is sweet and innocent unlike the rather cantankerous Angus Og. Pauline Baynes' illustrations throughout are an absolute delight.
May 5, 2020
A thoroughly enjoyable retelling of a Scottish legend. Beautiful illustrations bring the story to life. Highly recommend!
June 26, 2025
This was such an entertaining story with beautiful illustrations. I’m so happy I found it!
December 7, 2020
This is a children’s fantasy set in southern Scotland in the time of legends when the castles were made of wood. It is beautifully illustrated with full-page colour plates and integral black and white images.
There has been a dragon living for years in a cave below the pools of the Water of Milk on the estate of Tundergarth, growing from an egg to adulthood over the centuries (as dragons do) and taking the odd bullock for food. The old Lord wasn’t bothered about this loss to his stock but when he dies, the new one, Angus Og, comes down from the north as inheritor to the estate and resolves - much to the dismay of his wife Matilda who has formed an attachment to the beast - the dragon must be killed. (This particular Dragon is always capitalised whenever he is mentioned but dragons in general are not. He also has had no interaction with other dragons so does not quite know how a dragon should behave.)
Angus Og is persuaded not to do the deed himself as he does not have the necessary equipment nor protection and under Matilda’s urgings sends to Carlisle to fetch Robert le Douce whom Matilda knows will kill the dragon as kindly as possible. The price though, gold in the weight of a lamb, is something he balks at. The deed having been done, the unworldly dragon not knowing he ought to have fought, Angus Og reneges on the payment and Robert le Douce brings the two parts of the dragon’s body he had separated back together so that it could be restored to life. Means then have to be found to keep the dragon in food, though Og still maintains that no bullocks are to be used. Matilda’s solution is elegant but costly.
A delightful aspect of this was the liberal use of Scots words and phrases, a phenomenon not normally to be found in children’s literature.
Godden feels constrained to point out (in a preface) that the Angus Og portrayed in this book is not the historical Lord of the Isles nor his namesake prize bulls but may be an ancestor of the one in the Daily Record cartoon strip.
There has been a dragon living for years in a cave below the pools of the Water of Milk on the estate of Tundergarth, growing from an egg to adulthood over the centuries (as dragons do) and taking the odd bullock for food. The old Lord wasn’t bothered about this loss to his stock but when he dies, the new one, Angus Og, comes down from the north as inheritor to the estate and resolves - much to the dismay of his wife Matilda who has formed an attachment to the beast - the dragon must be killed. (This particular Dragon is always capitalised whenever he is mentioned but dragons in general are not. He also has had no interaction with other dragons so does not quite know how a dragon should behave.)
Angus Og is persuaded not to do the deed himself as he does not have the necessary equipment nor protection and under Matilda’s urgings sends to Carlisle to fetch Robert le Douce whom Matilda knows will kill the dragon as kindly as possible. The price though, gold in the weight of a lamb, is something he balks at. The deed having been done, the unworldly dragon not knowing he ought to have fought, Angus Og reneges on the payment and Robert le Douce brings the two parts of the dragon’s body he had separated back together so that it could be restored to life. Means then have to be found to keep the dragon in food, though Og still maintains that no bullocks are to be used. Matilda’s solution is elegant but costly.
A delightful aspect of this was the liberal use of Scots words and phrases, a phenomenon not normally to be found in children’s literature.
Godden feels constrained to point out (in a preface) that the Angus Og portrayed in this book is not the historical Lord of the Isles nor his namesake prize bulls but may be an ancestor of the one in the Daily Record cartoon strip.
May 25, 2018
I felt like a child again with this school library edition in my hand: the lush color illustrations, evocative line drawings, and little visual details throughout capturing and holding my attention. But it's Godden's storytelling that is most compelling; I held my breath for the gentle dragon and for Matilda's sorrow at her husband's wrong-headedness. What an absolute delight of a book, one which I'd encountered when I was actually a child but that I am also grateful to have discovered now.
April 22, 2023
Can't not rate this five stars because Rumer Godden and Pauline Baynes--what a dream team! Kids enjoyed it but thought it ended a bit abruptly. It's based on a Scottish legend, and I wouldn't be surprised if Kenneth Grahame had been influenced by the legend in writing The Reluctant Dragon.
June 1, 2022
This Scottish tale is lovely as told by Rumer Godden. I liked her books as a kid, but had not heard of this. I liked the old-timeyness, the illustrations, and the wonderful vocabulary. Adorable.
June 4, 2022
Fun story, very much in the tone of Grimms. A bit surprising but satisfying.
July 12, 2024
Cute book but ends abruptly. I would have liked another chapter or at least an epilogue.
January 31, 2015
This is one of my all-time favourite children's books. My late grandmother used to read it to me, and I have carried her copy with me through several cross-country moves. I remember in particular reading this aloud back and forth with my college roommate, along with Wilde's fairytales. There's an old world Scots charm to it that appeals to readers of all ages, and the illustrations are lovely. Just wonderful.
July 23, 2016
A young --as dragons go -- dragon lives quietly alone in a river for centuries without disturbing the locals, but when a new lord inherits the land he is determined to get rid of creature that eats two bullocks a month.
A note at the end says that this story comes from a Tundergarth legend, but this version is mostly made up by Godden.
A note at the end says that this story comes from a Tundergarth legend, but this version is mostly made up by Godden.
November 21, 2013
Oh, hello again, old friend!
I read this book in sixth grade and absolutely loved it. I have vivid memories of the illustrations and of reading it over and over again until I had to return it to the library. I had actually forgotten the title until I stumbled across it recently, and will need to add it to my collection.
I read this book in sixth grade and absolutely loved it. I have vivid memories of the illustrations and of reading it over and over again until I had to return it to the library. I had actually forgotten the title until I stumbled across it recently, and will need to add it to my collection.
April 28, 2017
This is one of my favorite dragon stories! I re-read it in 1990 and still loved it.
March 27, 2009
This is a short dragon story. I've re-read it several times. It reads like a fairy-tale. I love the book, though I'm not sure if it is a must read for everyone.
October 27, 2008
I adore this book.
June 24, 2010
a delightful telling of a dragon legend from Scotland. Both my son and I enjoyed it very much.
July 12, 2016
The Pauline Baynes illustrations fit perfectly =)
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews