Customer Reviews

A Hero's Guide to Deadly Dragons (Heroic Misadventures of Hiccup the Viking)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I ordered this book for my son. He has read all the books in this series (this is #5 or #6) and I can't express in words how much he LOVES the whole series. He is a reluctant reader, but zips through these books in less than a week! This book is a bit longer than the preious books, so it took him a bit longer to read. I asked him if this title was better or worse than the other books. He said it was just as good as all the previous books. I love the series because it is about a little viking boy, Hiccup, who doesn't fit into the viking mold. He is the son of the tribe's chief, and thus the heir, but instead of being big, strong, and mean, he is small, smart, skinny, and a "book-worm." He is also a bit of a dragon-whisperer. He uses his brains and ingenuity to solve problems and outwit enemies. We know that he grows up to be a great leader of his tribe, because these books are written as translations of his memoirs that recently washed up on the beach! If your child loves fantasy, then I recommend these books.

I'm a 3rd grade boy and I LOVE the How to Train Your Dragon books! These series of books are the best series ever!

Anyone who has any level of passion for books will appreciate the effort gone through in this particular story... for books. It's a sweet and heartfelt concept, this love of books, that drives this story and its humor as the children desperately risk their lives for a book. All book worms can support that.

Though maybe risking crazy and deadly driller dragons and crazy librarians may be a little too frightening for some, but it does make a heck of a good read as our awkward heroes race against the clock to steal an admittedly useless book.

And boy, does Cressida Cowell keep the adventure going! Her creative, madcap Viking world provides all the dangers and hilarious quirks for this mission, from invisible stealth dragons to swordfighting handbooks.

The writing is sharp, clear, and appealing, as his the humor. This is a great book for kids, especially boys who best appreciate crazy humor and a little bit of violence (nothing to put off mothers, mind you.)

Another hilarious book for boys from Cressida Cowell. My grandsons love them and I love to be around when they are reading and laughing out loud. My oldest grandson likes to read passages to anyone who will listen, but he has trouble because he is laughing too hard to speak. We donated a set of the first five books to his middle school and the librarian can't keep them on the shelf. She especially likes to recommend them to "reluctant readers".

I am continually impressed by the How to Train Your Dragon series, in large part because Cowell manages to weave in an amusing, fun tone that I have never been able to master in my own writing. She's just clever without trying too hard.

In this adventure of Hiccup's (not sure why the format of the title changed but this is the only one that doesn't begin with "how to...") it is Hiccup's birthday but nothing goes the way he wants it to. All he wants is a quiet day, but things quickly devolve as the Hooligans compete with the Bog Burglars to prove who is the better thief. True to their name, the Bog Burglars seem to be winning this one when Hiccup's dad challenges Big Boobied Bertha to a winner takes all competition. The result: Hiccup must sneak into the not-at-all Public Library to steal a copy of How to Train Your Dragon because Toothless destroyed the copy that the Hooligans had.

We get another adventure with Camicazi, the pint-sized Bog Burglar who Hiccup befriended earlier in the series, and Fishlegs (his less able comrade) as well as new dragons, new villains, and new tribes. Although the characters aren't the most well-developed (only Hiccup has real motivations, fears, and weaknesses that he actually works on), there are other things to hold onto. The world itself is much more fleshed out than the people though can't help but wonder why everyone things Hiccup is so incompetent after all that he has managed so far.

Perhaps the best part of this particular book in the series is what we learn about Hiccup's ancestors. Maybe Hiccup isn't as unusual and out of place as he first appears.

I'm transcribing a review from my 9 year old son.
"This book was really good because I really like dragons. I would recommend it to anyone who likes dragons." Short and sweet, there you have it.

My daughter is 9 and quite a girly girl at that but this series of books have her absolutely fascinated and thrilled. She spends HOURS and hours reading and re-reading the books over and over. No parent ever should get exasperated at their child for reading that much and it seems to me like I have to drag her out of the book/reading just so she can eat!! :-)

I read about many reviewers who's sons love the books - here's one for the girls....my daughter loves them too!! :-)

My 11 year old son loves this series by Cressida Cowell. This particular volume has lots more dragon illustrations with information about them similar to the first book. The illustrations are particularly captivating, but the story line could stand alone. Combined, they are great! My son sometimes reads these aloud to our family. I think my daughter will also love them when she reaches that reading level. We're a library family, but I think these are worth purchasing.

Great books. Fast shipping. My son hated reading but just loves these books. His reading lexile level before was around 580. These books in this series are around 980. He is reading at a full level higher. Thanks

this book was in the age selected category for 6- 8 year old children.
I think it would be better suited to a somewhat older child - the illustrations - art work and story just simply fails to capture my childs attention - not something I would recommend