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Dragonsdale #1
Skydancer
Visit a world where you can fly dragons!
Imagine a stable full of dragons to groom, train and ride! That’s Dragonsdale, a riding school run by Cara’s father.
All Cara’s friends are busy preparing their dragons for the Island Championships. But ever since her mother’s terrible riding accident, Cara is forbidden to ride. Against her father’s wishes, she trains the wild dragon, Skydancer, in secret, and dreams of a day when she, too, can take flight!
visit www.dragonsdale.net for more information about the wonderful world of Dragonsdale.
“Any girl in the world who evert dreamed of riding horses will relate to Cara.”
The Washington Post.
“…filled with adventure, perils and triumphs that will keep readers avidly involved.”
School Library Journal
Imagine a stable full of dragons to groom, train and ride! That’s Dragonsdale, a riding school run by Cara’s father.
All Cara’s friends are busy preparing their dragons for the Island Championships. But ever since her mother’s terrible riding accident, Cara is forbidden to ride. Against her father’s wishes, she trains the wild dragon, Skydancer, in secret, and dreams of a day when she, too, can take flight!
visit www.dragonsdale.net for more information about the wonderful world of Dragonsdale.
“Any girl in the world who evert dreamed of riding horses will relate to Cara.”
The Washington Post.
“…filled with adventure, perils and triumphs that will keep readers avidly involved.”
School Library Journal
Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2007
32 people are currently reading
701 people want to read
About the author
Salamanda Drake
14 books36 followersWhen it comes to dragons, SALAMANDA DRAKE knows her Goldenbrows from her Finbacks.
She is sixteen years old and lives with her father, a dragon rider in the Isles of Bresal. Her love of dragons began at the age of three, when her "Da" began taking her to fairs and showings around the islands. Discovering she had a special way with even the most unruly of creatures, she soon learnt that (in her own words) 'The only way to train a dragon is to be patient and never give up.'
She spends much of her free time (sometimes when she should be at school) sweeping, grooming, and exercising her father's dragons. Salamanda has a Trustbond with Hillsweeper, a Firecrest dragon, and together they are now competing at Showings. They have high hopes of representing Finnglass at the Island Championships.
She is sixteen years old and lives with her father, a dragon rider in the Isles of Bresal. Her love of dragons began at the age of three, when her "Da" began taking her to fairs and showings around the islands. Discovering she had a special way with even the most unruly of creatures, she soon learnt that (in her own words) 'The only way to train a dragon is to be patient and never give up.'
She spends much of her free time (sometimes when she should be at school) sweeping, grooming, and exercising her father's dragons. Salamanda has a Trustbond with Hillsweeper, a Firecrest dragon, and together they are now competing at Showings. They have high hopes of representing Finnglass at the Island Championships.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews
July 9, 2018
3,25 sterren - Nederlandse hardcover - I have dyslexia - childrens book for children from 9 years up. 🌹🌸🌺🌼🍀
June 1, 2009
The first thing that comes to mind is, "WOW!!!" I have recently reread this book, and am once again amazed at how perfectly, sensibly, and believably Drake has managed to create tack for dragons that make sense, and a completely new, complex way to steer dragons. It relates to horses, yet goes even more complicated. She has her own flying technique that makes sense and is believable! I am blown away at how she has mastered creating coveted worlds, and has excellent plots! I love it and recommend it to everyone; fantasy lovers, and non-fantasy lovers. Enjoy!
July 31, 2022
One of my most favourite books as a child. Really easy to read and nice pictures, re-read many times.
May 7, 2021
I thought this was an interesting premise. Take a girl's horse story, and substitute dragons for the horses. I found that the dragons were inserted in an interesting way, with realistic changes to the show horse world that were well thought out. As far as the characters and plot, though, I felt like they were too stereotypical and cliché for the girl horse story genre. There's nothing particularly wrong with it if you already love those kinds of stories, but it wasn't anything new except the worldbuilding.
September 26, 2009
In my 12 year old's words:
Dragonsdale is a nice book revealing an enchanting place. If I could only go to the places in books, I would love to go to Seahaven.
It is easy to see the love between Cara and Skydancer, to see how Drane would find it hard to fit in at Dragonsdale, and to feel the pressure Breena is in at the Island Championships. You can almost hear the predators howling and Sky hissing during the attack in the hills. Truly a well descripted book.
Read more of her review at: Reviewing Dragonsdale
Dragonsdale is a nice book revealing an enchanting place. If I could only go to the places in books, I would love to go to Seahaven.
It is easy to see the love between Cara and Skydancer, to see how Drane would find it hard to fit in at Dragonsdale, and to feel the pressure Breena is in at the Island Championships. You can almost hear the predators howling and Sky hissing during the attack in the hills. Truly a well descripted book.
Read more of her review at: Reviewing Dragonsdale
August 4, 2008
This book filled the Harry Potter void in my household--beautiful language and the topics focus mainly on friendship, with an adequate amount of suspense and bravery thrown in....I read this to my 7 year old daughter; but my 9 year old son kept sneaking in, too.
August 6, 2018
It was a good story, but some parts were a bit slow and/or cheesy.
July 10, 2019
I love this book, I read it years ago when I first started to love books. and re reading it felt so refreshing. this is the book to read if you want to try young fantasy books.
just amazing.
just amazing.
March 31, 2017
The book dragonsdale by Salamanda Drake is about a young girl named Cara. Cara is a stable hand at dragonsdale stables. Cara's father is the dragon master, the head of dragonsdale. When Cara was just a little girl her mom died in a dragon accident and now Cara's father wont let her ride. Cara finds herself drawn to the sky. Will Cara get to ride in the end? Find out in this high soaring adventure.
In the book there are many similes metaphors and alliterations. One example is, "The shimmering white curtain of the veil hides a wonderful secret." Another example is, "Sky dancer closed his great almond eyes." The third example is, "Then he settled down again, twitching his long tail, the fin-like spade at the end slapping the floor gently as Cara continued her affectionate stroking." The next example is, "He padded around in a circle a couple of times, like a huge scaly dog settling in its basket. An example of an alliteration is, "He was wearing a woolen jerkin and a woebegone expression.
I liked this book a lot although Cara's father made me mad through out almost the entire book. The very end of the book is what made me see Cara's father differently. The end was a very sentimental and good part in the book. I didn't like some of the parts in it because they were weird but at the end I couldn't put the book down.
In the book there are many similes metaphors and alliterations. One example is, "The shimmering white curtain of the veil hides a wonderful secret." Another example is, "Sky dancer closed his great almond eyes." The third example is, "Then he settled down again, twitching his long tail, the fin-like spade at the end slapping the floor gently as Cara continued her affectionate stroking." The next example is, "He padded around in a circle a couple of times, like a huge scaly dog settling in its basket. An example of an alliteration is, "He was wearing a woolen jerkin and a woebegone expression.
I liked this book a lot although Cara's father made me mad through out almost the entire book. The very end of the book is what made me see Cara's father differently. The end was a very sentimental and good part in the book. I didn't like some of the parts in it because they were weird but at the end I couldn't put the book down.
April 21, 2018
I must admit, the unique, wrap-around cover drew me to this book. Just a few pages in and I knew that my second and third graders would love it. Cara is a likeable character who knows all about dragons. Although her father raises them and keeps them for others to ride, his own fears of the potential danger keeps Cara from her dreams of riding them herself. Secretly, she bonds with Skydancer and trains to ride her in the Island Championships. It's a fun, easy read for young girls that are looking for something to read after they've exhausted Rainbow Fairies.
February 25, 2009
This book would make a great gift. The interest level is third through sixth grade. The back cover is a bifold that folds over the front cover. It gives the book a really nice feel.
It is fast-paced reading full of adventure that would make a great read-aloud for a classroom. It is a clean-cut plot with many emotional twists and turns and concludes with a classic Disney-type happy ending.
It is fast-paced reading full of adventure that would make a great read-aloud for a classroom. It is a clean-cut plot with many emotional twists and turns and concludes with a classic Disney-type happy ending.
November 4, 2012
This incredibly believable book is very similar to a “girl and her horse” novel except that the beast is not a horse. It is the dragons Skydancer. The star, Cara is the daughter of the dragon stable master (or dragon master) and wants more than anything to fly. Unfortunately, her mother died some years ago in a flying accident and her dad is so afraid of losing her too that he forbids Cara to fly at all.
May 13, 2008
Despite the horribly pastel cover art, this pleasantly gritty, but still with enough sentiment to capture its intended audience (and me, I admit). It felt like a younger version of Anne McCaffrey's early Pern books
August 25, 2015
I acquired this book when I was in year 2, but didn't read it. I'm glad I've read it now, it was a really nice read.
October 5, 2018
It was very thrilling, I would love to read the second book in the series.
September 13, 2023
Okay, I've only JUST started reading this book, and it's pretty obnoxious, because as cute as the fold-over cover is, it's irritating to hold.
The art is pretty, though!
(update)
So, it feels like a standard high fantasy story about a stable raising horses for breeding and riding competitions and so on, but replace the horses with dragons and add all the things that would be required for a stable if horses were huge, flew, and breathed fire. Also, the main character (Cara) wants to ride, but she has to spend all her time caring for the animals and so isn't allowed, even though children much younger than she is ride all the time (not jealous at all, nope). Got to love family conscription!
Also, the declaration is strange that, "Dragons aren't tame. They're wild creatures." Wild creatures are tame if they are ACCLIMATED TO HUMANS like EXACTLY WHAT THEY'VE DONE. You can't have a dragon breeding/flight school with non-tame, wild dragons! They would just eat all the humans! They aren't DOMESTICATED, sure, but wild animals can be tamed.
(post-completion update)
Okay, I've read this book before, but with a horse. The story is almost exactly the same other than the setting:
- one untameable beast who only likes the young girl
- girl goes through lots of surreptitious activity to soothe the beast that doesn't like anyone else
- horrible trainer tries to literally whip the beast into shape
- beast attacks in self-defence
- girl prevents the beast's execution and goes on to take it for her own, literally escaping with it
Er, spoilers.
Dragonsdale, at least, is more about the lesson about a parent's fear about *also* losing a child to the same thing that caused the other parent to perish. The thing is, in denying the child the thing that most gives her pleasure, the child goes through life without that joy, and in the meantime, she could still die from some other stupid thing, and what good is THAT?
So, I don't like the gimmick cover, and the story is a bit painful to read for most of it, but the ending is good enough that I forgive its faults. (Not enough to give full stars, though.)
The art is pretty, though!
(update)
So, it feels like a standard high fantasy story about a stable raising horses for breeding and riding competitions and so on, but replace the horses with dragons and add all the things that would be required for a stable if horses were huge, flew, and breathed fire. Also, the main character (Cara) wants to ride, but she has to spend all her time caring for the animals and so isn't allowed, even though children much younger than she is ride all the time (not jealous at all, nope). Got to love family conscription!
Also, the declaration is strange that, "Dragons aren't tame. They're wild creatures." Wild creatures are tame if they are ACCLIMATED TO HUMANS like EXACTLY WHAT THEY'VE DONE. You can't have a dragon breeding/flight school with non-tame, wild dragons! They would just eat all the humans! They aren't DOMESTICATED, sure, but wild animals can be tamed.
(post-completion update)
Okay, I've read this book before, but with a horse. The story is almost exactly the same other than the setting:
- one untameable beast who only likes the young girl
- girl goes through lots of surreptitious activity to soothe the beast that doesn't like anyone else
- horrible trainer tries to literally whip the beast into shape
- beast attacks in self-defence
- girl prevents the beast's execution and goes on to take it for her own, literally escaping with it
Er, spoilers.
Dragonsdale, at least, is more about the lesson about a parent's fear about *also* losing a child to the same thing that caused the other parent to perish. The thing is, in denying the child the thing that most gives her pleasure, the child goes through life without that joy, and in the meantime, she could still die from some other stupid thing, and what good is THAT?
So, I don't like the gimmick cover, and the story is a bit painful to read for most of it, but the ending is good enough that I forgive its faults. (Not enough to give full stars, though.)
August 24, 2020
A re-read of a book I really liked as a kid. I think the reason it hit me so hard is that the authors (Steve Barlow and Steve Skidmore, under the pseudonym "Salamanda Drake") really captured the helplessness and frustration of being a kid and having things be out of your control. Re-reading as an adult, it's even more obvious that Huw does wrong by his daughter. It's not fair for him to try to control Cara when it's obvious that she has a love for flying and that the sport, while dangerous, is safe enough for plenty of other kids to feel safe doing it. It's also not fair for him to deny her her grief for her mother just because his is too painful to face. Cara has to try to mourn her mother alone, because her father refuses to ever talk about her-- but Cara's in a way lost both parents, because her mother's dead and her father is emotionally unavailable and too busy for her. It always really bothered me that her father never apologizes at the end. It's hard to read about the pain Cara goes through with no help from any of the adults in her life. As an adult she'd be free to make her own choices, but as a child she's subject to her father's control.
Basically what I'm saying is that this book always made me cry as a kid and it made me cry as an adult too on this re-read. Cara is a great, strong and tough character who's willing to risk defying her only family for what she knows is right. Plus, the worldbuilding of the dragons and competitions is cool, and I always like a good horse-girl book. A surprisingly emotional and hard-hitting read.
Basically what I'm saying is that this book always made me cry as a kid and it made me cry as an adult too on this re-read. Cara is a great, strong and tough character who's willing to risk defying her only family for what she knows is right. Plus, the worldbuilding of the dragons and competitions is cool, and I always like a good horse-girl book. A surprisingly emotional and hard-hitting read.
May 22, 2023
This book is absolutely timeless for me, and is a wonderful children's/YA book that I would absolutely recommend to anyone.
In the first book of this series, you follow Cara, a young girl who dreams of riding dragons. Her father runs a famous stable for dragons called Dragonsdale, and he has forbidden Cara from riding due to her mother's death in a riding accident. Cara has a deep bond with a dragon called Skydancer, who came to the stable as a dragonet, orphaned by wild creatures. Through trials and tribulations, Cara teaches herself to fly, learns what happened to her late mother, and eventually earns the freedom to ride.
I have read this book dozens of times. I read it when I'm feeling sick or depressed to bring myself back to a better time. I own the physical Scholastic edition of this book with the fold-out cover, and I am purchasing the entire set on Kindle, because I love this world so much. The formatting on the ebook is by far the nicest ebook I've ever read, albiet, keep in mind that you're not going to be reading American English, you'll be reading European English.
Despite this being a children's or YA book, I love this book, and will continue to love it for the rest of time. If you or someone you know loves horses, take this leap into fantasy. You will find yourself stepping into a beautiful world that you'll never want to leave.
In the first book of this series, you follow Cara, a young girl who dreams of riding dragons. Her father runs a famous stable for dragons called Dragonsdale, and he has forbidden Cara from riding due to her mother's death in a riding accident. Cara has a deep bond with a dragon called Skydancer, who came to the stable as a dragonet, orphaned by wild creatures. Through trials and tribulations, Cara teaches herself to fly, learns what happened to her late mother, and eventually earns the freedom to ride.
I have read this book dozens of times. I read it when I'm feeling sick or depressed to bring myself back to a better time. I own the physical Scholastic edition of this book with the fold-out cover, and I am purchasing the entire set on Kindle, because I love this world so much. The formatting on the ebook is by far the nicest ebook I've ever read, albiet, keep in mind that you're not going to be reading American English, you'll be reading European English.
Despite this being a children's or YA book, I love this book, and will continue to love it for the rest of time. If you or someone you know loves horses, take this leap into fantasy. You will find yourself stepping into a beautiful world that you'll never want to leave.
July 14, 2019
The fearless Cara lives with her father on their property named Drangonsdale. She helps him take care of and train dragons but is forbidden to ride the dragons because her mom died after she fell off riding a dragon. She is especially fond of Skydancer, a Goldenbrow which is the rarest breed of dragons. He is hard to train but Cara’s natural connection to Skydancer makes them the perfect pair. Unfortunately, Skydancer is sold to the Lord Torin’s spoiled daughter Hortense.
During this story, Cara lies to her father and suffers the consequences. The reader also sees how Hortence’s inability to take responsibility and her mistreatment of the dragons is not how one should behave. These are good lessons to learn.
This would be a good book for children in young elementary grades. I think girls would be more interested in this series since the main character is a girl. The pictures were fun and help one to envision what the dragons would look like. There was also a map of Dragonsdale and a training log in the back of the book which could help develop more of the story in one’s imagination.
During this story, Cara lies to her father and suffers the consequences. The reader also sees how Hortence’s inability to take responsibility and her mistreatment of the dragons is not how one should behave. These are good lessons to learn.
This would be a good book for children in young elementary grades. I think girls would be more interested in this series since the main character is a girl. The pictures were fun and help one to envision what the dragons would look like. There was also a map of Dragonsdale and a training log in the back of the book which could help develop more of the story in one’s imagination.
June 3, 2024
This was a nostalgic read for me and it didn't disappoint! When I was younger, I think all I did was look at the graphite-drawn illustrations and form my own story. Reading the actual story was a cute, heartfelt experience in and of itself. Think, "How to train your dragon" except less about breaching the gap between dragon and man and more about deepening the bond already present between them. It has all the ingredients that makes a middle-grade book - quirky characters, whimsical environment that you want to get lost in and all the toungue-in-cheek moments that a tween would be amused by. I was also deeply fascinated how realistically portrayed riding a dragon was in this book, pretty much combining the respective techniques used when riding a horse and flying a plane with each other to ultimately riding a dragon. Such a charming read and am surprised there are another two books in the series when initially, I only thought there was just one more. So I'm definitely interested to read on and complete the series for my tween self.
July 19, 2019
Dragonsdale (Book 1): Skydancer
Salamanda Drake
ok I loved this book!!!
found this in the being of the book and had to share, it shows just a peek into the world of Dragonsdale.
The Isles of Bresal
Far out in the ocean, beyond all the shores we know, hangs a huge bank of mist-the veil.
the shimmering white curtain of the veil hides a wonderful secret.
for beyond the veil lie the isles of Bresal- the land of the Blessed.
The isles are home to humans and mer-folk, pards and perytons, howlers and firedogs....
and Dragons.
ok so when I read this I just knew it was going to be good. :)
Salamanda Drake
ok I loved this book!!!
found this in the being of the book and had to share, it shows just a peek into the world of Dragonsdale.
The Isles of Bresal
Far out in the ocean, beyond all the shores we know, hangs a huge bank of mist-the veil.
the shimmering white curtain of the veil hides a wonderful secret.
for beyond the veil lie the isles of Bresal- the land of the Blessed.
The isles are home to humans and mer-folk, pards and perytons, howlers and firedogs....
and Dragons.
ok so when I read this I just knew it was going to be good. :)
October 22, 2018
While this book isn't extremely original, it is fun to read and I can see why my daughter loves it so much. The relationship between Cara and Skydancer is really sweet and will make you want a dragon even if you're an adult. Readers should be warned that the abuse of dragons does play an important part in this book, but my sensitive 7 year old was able to handle it with only mild distress. She can't wait to read the next one and I'm sure I'll enjoy it too. I would recommend this book to kids 7 and up who love dragons (or horses, as the dragons behave in a very horsey manner and the principles of riding are similar).
July 31, 2017
I gobbled this book up all in one day. I got it to gift to an avid young reader in my life, but thought it would be fun if we could chat about it once she reads it. Thus, I tucked in to what I thought would be a cute little story. Little did I suspect that this book would be as wonderfully written as it is. The imagery and emotional context is all so incredibly vivid, and the world itself so absolutely tangible. Reading this story was an absolute delight.... so much do that I'm hoping to find the second book in the series soon.
December 17, 2021
For some reason this book stuck with me since I read it as a young child. I could never remember the title, or even the entire plot, but I could always picture the cover perfectly. After quite a bit of searching, I’ve finally found it again. While certainly a bit childish and formulaic, I would say it still holds the same joy it did when I was little. I would definitely recommend it to someone younger, or someone with small children.
April 12, 2022
Pas le meilleur livre, mais on passe un bon moment. On comprends que le père ait peur que sa fille vole sur un dragon alors que sa femme en est morte, mais l'amour entre sa fille et son dragon est très touchane. La scène finale avec les obstacles est vraiment très bien écrite, on voit l'osmose entre le dragon et la fille et c'est vraiment très intéressant à lire. Un livre à lire, mais sans avoir trop d'attentes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 28, 2021
I'm so glad that I could find the name of this book again after racking the internet. I reread it as a 7-9 year old kid over and over from my local library. It gave me so much joy and so many dreams. I get nostalgic just thinking about it. It is pure magic for little kids. I'm even tempted to find a capt somewhere and read it again.
January 14, 2024
I was reading the synopsis for The Fourth Wing and thought “this sounds like the grown-up, edgy version of Dragonsdale!” Totally forgot about this book but it was one of my very favorites as a kid. I fabricated many a spinoff universe based on it (frog-dragons?? Tiny humans riding birds??? Welcome to my childhood)
January 18, 2018
I loved this book as a child and I re read it now at the age of 18 and still love it so much. The world feels so real and I still long to be part of it. Definitely worth a read. Good strong female role models.
November 9, 2019
If you are looking for a book about a dragon who converses with the characters, this is not the book for you. The cover looks childish, but it is not. It is rather about a girl who trains dragons much like an equestrian and wants to ride, but her father will not allow it.
January 10, 2024
I love dragons. In the beginning of the book, I was not that interested because is for little children. But after a while, I became so invested in this girl and her dragon and to see her fly. I had such a lovely time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews