Dragons Beware!

Chronicles of Claudette #2

by Jorge Aguirre, Rafael Rosado (Illustrator)

Scrappy Claudette sets out once again with her pal Marie and her little brother Gaston to right wrongs and fight evil. And this time, it's personal. Claudette is out to get the dragon who ate her father's legs...and his legendary sword. But as usual, nothing is as simple as it seems, and Claudette is going to need Marie and Gaston's help more than ever.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Childrens, Comics, Adventure, Humor

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 12, 2015

About the author

Jorge A. Aguirre is an East Coast-based writer born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He wrote the graphic novel, GIANTS BEWARE (First Second Books/Macmillan), which the New York Times called, a "rollicking fun story." He also wrote its sequel, DRAGONS BEWARE (May 2015). He has already written the third book of the CHRONICLES OF CLAUDETTE. Besides books, Jorge also produces and writes TV for kids. He's worked for Disney, Junior, Nick, Jr., and PBS.

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Claudette is such a breath of fresh air. She is so much fun and her sidekicks happen to be the best sidekicks ever.

We start out with Claudette and Maria separated by Maria's parents as Claudette is such a bad influence on her. The city is attacked and Claudette's father goes out on his own to retrieve a sword he lost in the belly of a dragon. Claudette and gang go off on a quest to defeat and army of gargoyles that have surrounded the city. She meets a evil wizard and she has to defeat him. Claudette and company win the day.

This is a great book for youngish readers. I have got my niece interested in reading this. I hope see will enjoy it. I love Gaston the cook. He is a fantastic cook and I like that Maria prefers to negotiate instead of fight a war. That is awesome. I will go on with the 3drd one.

[First Second Books]

We absolutely loved GIANTS BEWARE!, so we're so happy to be bringing another story of Claudette and Marie and Gaston to you all!

One of my favorite things about this book is how Claudette and Marie are really different. They're both girls -- and they're both the same age. So it seems like they might have a lot in common. And they do! A desire to save their home, respect for their families, believing in friendship and in the power of good. But on the surface, the two of them are completely different, even though they're friends.

With Marie believing in diplomacy and thoughtfulness and talking things out and Claudette believing in action, fighting, and hitting things with swords, with Marie loving to play dress-up and Claudette jumping in mud puddles, the two of them are great, fully-realized, positive girl characters who aren't at all alike.

Yay that!

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fun read from Jorge Aguirre, but for me it didn't quite live up to Giants Beware!. Dragons Beware! introduces an overarching plot, a villain, and references to past events (prior to the events of Giants Beware!), all of which makes it more of a traditional, serial-type comic book and less of a stand-alone story.

But Dragons Beware! is still a valuable addition to any library's graphic novel collection due to its adventurous, somewhat androgynous, red-haired tomboy heroine; her physically handicapped dad; and her un-adventurous, aspiring chef little brother.

Note: I received a digital galley of this book through NetGalley.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable sequel to GIANTS BEWARE but I missed the sense and feel for character development that came in the first book that wasn't present in DRAGONS BEWARE. This volume spent more time on action sequences and less time on characterization and as someone who prefers character-driven stories, I definitely felt like there was something missing. Especially since the first book balanced the two so well.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this sequel! Can't wait to purchase for my library!

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked my first encounter with Claudette in Dragons Beware! and found this one just as charming in its own way, even while it reveals more about each of the characters. Grombach, an evil sorcerer, is threatening Claudette's village, and after her father heads off to reclaim his sword from a fierce dragon, she decides to join him. As other reviewers have noted, this one is notable because of the different ways the two female characters deal with problems. Hot-headed Claudette tends to wade in without thinking and is ready to bash her way through any obstacles while Marie, the local beauty, prefers to negotiate her way to a solution. I particularly liked how these unlikely heroes banded together and managed to score a victory without slaying the dragon. Clearly, Claudette comes by her heroics naturally since her father still manages to do his share of fighting without his lower legs and by using a cart to move around in. Yes, I want more from Claudette and her crew.

[Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great character development good and funny story and great fun to read.

[Sharon Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dragons Beware! by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado is the graphic novel follow up to the middle grade hit Giants Beware! (which I loved). Scrappy Claudette sets out once again with her pal Marie and her little brother Gaston to right wrongs and fight evil. Claudette is out to get the dragon who ate her father's legs, and his legendary sword. But as usual, nothing is as simple as it seems, and Claudette is going to need Marie and Gaston's help more than ever.

Dragons Beware is as full of adventure and charm as Giant Beware was. Claudette is as determined to be exactly who she wants to be as ever, and proves herself to be strong, smart, and lucky. Gaston and Marie prove themselves to be great as friends and companions on their grand adventure. I like that no one fits in the expected stereotypes even when they appear too. The illustrations and the adventure are high and bright and well worth the time of all readers, regardless of gender or age.

Dragons Beware is a wonderful sequel and a great choice for parents that want to show their children that girls can be anything and anyway they want to be. it is okay for boys to be scared or brave and to love cooking. It is okay for girls to love being a princess, or to be the dragon fighting knight. Funny, fast, high-energy storytelling in an inventive and perilous fantasy landscape makes Dragons Beware! a fantastic follow-up to 2012's middle-grade hit Giants Beware!

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom bought both this and Giants Beware for my five-year-old daughter for her recent birthday, and because she's a little obsessed with dragons, insisted on reading this one first. The comic book nerd in my heart died a little (it's volume #2), but I humored her, and we loved it. Claudette is an insane little psycho, for sure, but the supporting characters are hilarious and awesome.

I can't decide which scene was my favorite-- Claudette trying to bonk the giant dragon with her tiny sword while Marie does her damndest to shout diplomacy at it instead, or Zubair sending the armored poppa Augustine in his wheelchair down the hill at a flock of evil gargoyles with a mighty shove so that poppa could own the shit out of them. Or Gaston admitting that he is not a warrior, and poppa accepting this without a blink and offering his unconditional love anyway. Hilarious and wonderful, honestly. My baby girl and I read this in two sittings, and she was riveted. And I finally get to read #1 tomorrow.

I'll try not to read ahead.

>.>
<.<

[MerryMeerkat · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars, Buy it


Charming, sweet, and very funny like the first book. Claudette is just as spunky and fun as she was in the first book. There are Gargoyles, Hags, Princes, Evil men and talking swords… what’s not to love about this series. The art isn’t always the best, but I can always overlook that if the writing is good. Also I realize I haven’t mentioned the sidekick pug dog named valiant who is super cute. I love the handicapped father who adores his children. SO minor spoiler alert, there is a scene where a dragon throws up and if you look at the vomit (yes I just said that) there is captain america’s shield and the Mona Lisa among some other stuff. Pretty funny.


And for the book nerd inside of all of us, the paper is nice and smooth and glossy like i like it :-) Also, I really hope there is a third in the series. THis is another favorite of 2016.

[Jenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I'm not quite sure what Claudette is looking at on this cover, it was a fun, rolicking read that followed the first volume much closer than I'd anticipated it would. I highly enjoyed the tie-ins and am looking forward to more! And I'm also glad that everyone is seeming to be a bit more comfortable in their chosen "career paths" and received praise for working towards those goals, rather than something predetermined,

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our whole family loves these books! The kids have both read it twice already. I love seeing the characters develop and grow, even as they stay true to their Giants Beware! selves. My kids especially love the adventure and the saucy-kid-appropriate jokes.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and funny; think I liked this more than Giants Beware (although it's hard to beat baby-feet-eating Giants...). Video review here.

[Dax · Rating 5 out of 5]

You would think that Claudette would tire but she is just as tenacious as the first book. I think my favorite would be the development of Augustine, Claudette's & Gaston's, father. Seeing Gaston come into themselves a bit better is wonderful as well!

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as good as the first for me, but almost. This is such a fun, adventurous series, I love it and hope to see more of Claudette and the gang to come!

[Fikibro · Rating 3 out of 5]

funny, exciting, this book is great!

[Sophie_The_Jedi_Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just I just I just

I LOVE THIS SERIES SO MUCH

I only read the first two books back when I was a wee young'un, but I just HAVE to pick up book 3. I need it so badly.

Most of my thoughts on this series can be seen in my review for book 1. The characters are delightful, the friendships are strong, and the action scenes are really really good for a middle-grade series - you don't usually get this level of quality. And every single character is able to shine and get their own arc.

I love how characters from book 1 pop up in here - and oh man, Augustine and Zahair are SO COOL. I was awed by them when I was younger and I still am now! Breaker was the neatest addition.

Read this series, right now. You absolutely won't regret it.

5/5 stars.

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Story: 5 stars
Art: 5 stars

Phenomenal full-color children's graphic novel. Engaging cast of characters in an incredibly funny, well-constructed story. Lots of heart (Gaston!) and girl power of both the kick-ass (Claudette) and more bookish (the fair Marie) varieties. Sequel to Giants Beware!, but even better. I really hope this pair of talented creators is busy at work on the next book in this series.

[Jane Maple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starts with Claudette telling the story of her dad's sword Breaker and how the dragon Azra the Atrocious ate the sword and her dad's legs and hand. Her dad says that is not how it happened. Claudette begs her dad to tell the story but he refuses. Claudette bugs her dad for warrior lessons and tells the towns children that she will get Breaker back from the dragon. Meanwhile Zubair and her dad notice crows which they take as a sign that Grombach has escaped. The Marquis says it is impossible but sends out a patrol to investigate. Leo the sentry is very scared by the idea and tries to play sick. Meanwhile, Marie's mom has locked her in a tower so Claudette won't put her in danger again, but does say their benefits to her recent adventure with a group of seven princes who are all trying to woe Marie. Meanwhile, Gaston has hung up his apron and says that he will not cook again until he is a master swordsmaker (something which he is failing at) which means Claudette is cooking, which none of the gang is thrilled with. Claudette goes to visit Marie and makes the prince's form a human ladder so she and Gaston can get up to their friend. Gargoyles attack the city. Claudette and her dog Valiant go out to fight them, but the grab Leo the sentry and fly off. The gargoyles who do fly into the city become birds because magic doesn't work within the city walls. Claudette's dad goes out to get his sword back and refuses to take anyone with him. (Telling Zubair to watch over the children.) Instead Zubair has the Marquis lock Claudette and Gaston in Marie's tower and he goes after Augustine (Claudette's dad). When Claudette asks how they are going to keep her here, the Marquis reminds her that he does actually have an army. He then says they will have to find a permanent place for both kids since no one comes back from the Grim Grotto alive other than Augustine who didn't come back in one piece. This causes Claudette and Gaston to cry. Marie tries to cheer her friends by playing a dress up game (which neither of them enjoy.) That night Claudette sneaks out to go after her dad, since she is still dressed up the princes think it is Marie who is catapulted out of the city. Valiant (Claudette's dog) tries to warn her of a Gargoyle attack. Claudette finds that her wooden sword can turn these Gargoyles into birds just as the city walls did. Suddenly she is grabbed by one large Gargoyle (because she didn't understand Vliant's warning in time) but her friends show up. Gaston grabs the sword uses it on the Gargoyles foot, and all three friends drop toward a river. Marie calls out the River King who catches them. (Marie sees the River Prince again and is very kind to him.). The River King warns them about Grombach before they depart. They run across the Marquis' men who are all trapped in Amber. This freaks out Marie and Gaston, but Claudette is happy to be in over her head. When the Marquis and his wife realize that once again Marie has escaped the town the Marquis heads out with his townsmen army, but they are all frightened back by the Gargoyles. So Marie's mom sends the seven princes out after her daughter. The three friends see giants fleeing Grombach who turns one into stone. They see their friend Minu and tell him he has to get out of there. His mom grabs him and runs. Claudette deflects magic, but when Grombach approaches he uses his staff to break Claudette's sword. At that moment Marie realizes that Grombach is actually her grandfather. Just as Leo the sentry is asking the kids to save him, the Apple Hag shows up and begins to fight Grombach. The children save Leo (saying they don't leave a friend behind) then they see Zubair trapped in amber. Marie has the idea to use Claudette's broken sword to dissolve the magic amber and free Zubair. The seven princes arrive and Marie tries to get them to run away but Grombach captures them. Leo insists that they save the Apple Hag. The gang regroups at the Apple Hag's house. Gaston uses nails to hammer Claudette's wooden sword back together. Claudette gets Zubair to agree to take them with him. That evening, once the girls are asleep, Gaston makes food for Zubair saying he is doing it as a medical exception. The Apple Hag says he is making a mistake turning his back on his talent and gives him a spell book with ingredients in the back. Zubair and the kids make it to the Grim Grotto, but Grombach (who is being carried in a thrown carried by the seven princes) decides he should go there as well. Gaston shows his sister the spell book but she convinces him to put it away saying that he is a fighter like her and their dad. Zubair and the kids pass through a cave full of Azra's sleeping children. Claudette tries to wake them up but the others silence her. As they go along a ledge behind a waterfall, Zubair encourages them to exercise caution. When Gaston falls, then Valiant falls trying to catch Gaston, and Claudette falls trying to catch both of them Zubair grabs all of them and suggests that they could exercise a little more caution. When two dragons attack them Zubair tells the children to run, but claudette jumps on the dragon only to realize she is over her head and asks for help. Zubair throws a rope around the dragon's leg and tells Claudette to slide down the rope which she does and falls into her friends who are trying to catch her. They race away from the dragons and into Azra's lair where they find dragon vomit, then Augustine's wheel chair and then Augustine himself stuck in the dragon's sticky vomit. Azra suddenly appears and Claudette admits that the dragon is bigger than she imagined. Azra traps Zubair in the sticky vomit, while Marie tries her diplomacy lessons on the dragon. Gaston, very scared, does stand up to the dragon just to end up with his pants on fire. Both Claudette and Marie try their approaches again and fail again (now Marie is stuck in vomit as well). Zubair encourages Gaston to use the Apple Hag's magic. Gaston is disappointed telling his dad he is not a good warrior. His dad responds that he should do what he loves and he will always be proud of him. Augustine also tells Claudette that when he fought Azra last he had help from their mother. This encourages Claudette to free the three who were trapped and tell them to all try their best and that something has to work. Gaston works on a fire defense spell, the two adults work on a trap, Claudette jumps on the dragon's back, and Marie continues to try negotiation. At the last minute Gaston's spell works and turns the dragon's flames into bubbles. Marie demands to know what the dragon wants. It says it wants to live and Marie suggests they can negotiate that for the sword. Meanwhile Grombach has gotten to the outside of the cave. Gaston does a spell to cause the dragon to vomit up all sorts of stuff including the sword (even though it is against the baker code which says that that which is in the belly should stay there.) Their dad gets his sword back and starts having a one sided conversation with it which confuses the kids. Augustine goes after Grombach and the others are following behind the kids are riding dragons. (The seven princes are quite impressed with Marie's dragon flying abilities. Gaston has his dragon drop him off and does another spell which transforms Grombach's Cerberus into a stone statue. Marie gets her princes to join her on her dragon. Claudette fights the gargoyles but when she needs help one of the princes grabs her and adds her to Marie's dragon. The gargoyles swarm Marie's dragon and both girls and the princes fall and Gaston does a spell which transforms the gargoyles into stuffed animals which break their fall. Meanwhile Augustine who has been fighting Grombach drops Breaker and yells to Claudette to grab it. Both Claudette and Grombach run for it, it looks like Grombach will get it, but then Marie runs into her grandfather with a dragon letting Claudette get the sword. As she picks up the sword she realizes the sword can talk to her telepathically (thus explaining her dad's odd behavior earlier.) However Claudette offends the sword by not listening to its alternate strategy as a response it gets to heavy for her to lift until she apologizes and then it lets her fight. Grombach sends a spell into the air to trap all into Amber. claudette climbs on Azra and tells her to go up to the top of the beam then Claudette uses Breaker to redirect the spell back down on Grombach trapping him in his own amber spell. Meanwhile back at the town all the gargoyles suddenly become birds and Marie's mom is positive her daughter had a hand in the victory. Augustine asks Claudette for his sword back. She says hers was broken how can she train to be a great warrior without a sword. Her dad says she is already a great warrior and he will make her sword which agrees to. Marie makes peace with the dragons. Zumbair and Augustine discuss how Gaston will need formal training in magic. Gaston asks how that can happen when magic is outlawed in the town. His dad says he will talk to the Marquis. Henri (the nicest of the princes) asks to escort Marie back to town which she agrees to. Augustine tells his son he is hungry and will he make dinner when they get home, Gaston gets excited and mentions the feast he will make. His dad says sandwiches will do but after seeing his sons sad face and the big group around them (Zubair, the kids, the princes and even the dragons in the air) his dad says that he can make a feast.
Willa

[☆Maggie☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I might have a more enthusiastic reaction to Dragons Beware! if I had read the first book in the series. Don't get me wrong, readers can enjoy this book without having read the first book, but I think I was missing some background information that may have helped me enjoy the book more.

The negatives:
-Many of the characters did not have much character development, which left me wondering how they got where they were or acting they way they were
-There were too many seemingly unnecessary characters that did not add much to the story (perhaps they were rolled over from the first book where they played a bigger role?)
-This is definitely an action-driven story. There were a lot of action scenes jam-packed into a short story. I would have preferred more character development and explanation

The positives:
-Strong female characters
-Reversed gender roles (there's a young boy who loves cooking, even though he's expected to be a warrior)
-Funny

While I might not have a raving review of Dragons Beware!, I know kids will enjoy it. And I can appreciate any book that has great messages for kids.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aguirre, Jorge Dragons Beware! (Giants Beware, #2), illustrated by Rafael Rosado, 153 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL. First Second (Macmillan), 2015. $15. Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G.

Claudette, her baking little brother and her princess-like best friend decide to go on another quest in an attempt to reclaim Claudette’s father’s sword, Breaker. Breaker can nullify magic, but was eaten by a big mother dragon named Azra. Claudette’s father’s nemesis is coming with his gargoyle army, so Claudette knows she needs Breaker. Claudette is not afraid to face Azra, but she will need her family and friends to conquer Azra and win against the gargoyles.

Claudette is a brave warrior girl who is afraid of nothing. Her innocent brother and bestie are always by her side and I love to see what creative ways they use to accomplish their journey. They do destroy some gargoyles, but there isn’t any graphic violence and the illustrations are very appealing.

EL (K-3), EL – ESSENTIAL. Reviewer, C. Peterson.
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2018...

[Christina Getrost · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute all-ages graphic novel set in the Middle Ages, about a girl who wants to go on another adventure (this is a sequel to her first adventure, Giants Beware!). An evil wizard is coming to attack her walled village, and her father, wounded from a dragon attack years ago, sets out to kill that dragon so that he can retrieve his magic-busting sword that the dragon ate, and defend the village. Claudette, our pint-sized heroine, wants to help him so she sneaks out of the village with her friend Marie the princess and her younger brother Gaston (who busts stereotypes by loving to cook AND wanting to be a warrior). They use their wits and courage to defeat the dragon and the wizard, but not in the ways you might expect. This story is great: Claudette is impulsive and brave; Marie has to constantly avoid the seven princes who keep trying to woo her; side characters are also funny and memorable; there's funny anachronistic dialogue and plenty of slapstick humor for all. Loved the slick colorful tv-animation-style art.

[Milan Žila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even better than the first one.

The action scenes are drawn beautifully and I really liked the pictures spread across both pages. The story is engaging and funny. The book doesn't take itself too seriously and some of the jokes are very funny. There are some surprises as well.

I enjoyed most of the characters except for all of the young princes but that hardly matters as I am not the target demographic for this book.

Even though I bought this book for my daughter, we enjoyed it together and the book kept me entertained until my throat was sore from reading aloud.

[karenbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming and clever. For some reason the kids weren't interested even though I thought it'd be perfect for my seven-year-old. I couldn't resist reading it myself, and it was just as cute as I thought it would be.


(three-and-a-half stars)

[Addie Dehart · Rating 4 out of 5]

The boys(6 and 8) and I love this series. The three children are such great characters and it is fun to read about their adventures. My boys are the perfect age for this series and I highly recommend it to everyone with children around this age.

[FireBeast · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED IT! Fighting dragons! Killing Giants! Saviing her friends Thank u Jorge Aguirre :D

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

More, sword wielding, side splitting, team building action for Claudette, Marie, and Gaston. This time we get to see Claudette's dad in action!

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Claudette so much.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is such great fun - and on so many different levels. I highly, highly recommend reading this one!

[Lindsay Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Claudette is a bad ass!