Customer Reviews

The Loathsome Dragon

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

 

 

The original 1987 release of this book is worth 5 stars, make no mistake. The artwork is still worth 5 stars.

And when I saw it was out again, in a new version, I didn't look past the pictures before I bought it and ran it home.

Then I started reading. And I knew in my bones it couldn't be the same book. I would never have treasured a book that read this badly. So I compared it to a library copy of the original.

Though the authors are the same for this new release and for the original release, most of the text has changed, and for the worse in every case.

Many readers, working only from old memories (If they've seen the book before at all) will only notice that Childe Wynde has been renamed Prince Richard. The new version is shorter, but clumsier. the writing that used to flow ends up awkward. It also talks down to the reader, explaining and repeating itself where the original didn't.

One illustration has also been replaced (The climax page, which is also used as the new cover art) with a similar but inferior version. The rest are not only left alone, the colours are redone, a bit fresher and crisper. I'll grant them that.

Look for the original release. Pay more if you have to. The original is worth it. This is a cheap imitation.

My daughter is a princess crazy preschooler. I am a mom who is tired of the Disney princesses. This book was a great break. The pictures are lovely. There is both a male and female main character. The dragon is not overly cruel and there is limited violence. The story follows the typical fairy tale story pattern which makes it easy to talk about similarities and differences to other books. I highly recommend the book.

I was so pleased to see this book back in print!

I raised my children on a healthy diet of traditional fairytales and beautiful art. This book was one of their favorites. We started searching for it when the grandchildren began to arrive, but couldn't find it. Somewhere along the course of years our copy had disappeared and though everyone in the family knew the tale by heart, we couldn't remember the title. (In our house it was simply known as "The Dragon book"--as though it were the ONLY book about a dragon.)

I stumbled across the Amazon listing and had it on my wish list for a couple of months before it was actually released. When the Amazon copy arrived, I sat down to read the cherished story and was transported not only to "Once upon a time", but to a more recent time when my children and I would read the book together and closely examine the pictures for a wealth of details.

This is a lovely book. David Wiesner's art is wonderful and the tale is told in a straightforward manner that would do a medieval bard proud. If you love fairytales or dragons, you will not be disappointed by the Loathsome Dragon.

Take a traditional English fairy tale revolving around dragons, wicked stepmothers, a prince and evil enchantment, add gorgeous paintings by David Wiesner, and retell the package for young readers with rudimentary skills and you have all the elements of a favorite book in The Loathsome Dragon. The story has the same basic structure but is more accessible to the younger audiences, here.

I'm a 7 year old kid who loves dragons, and this is my second favorite dragon book. (Ignis is my favorite. Ignis ) I like this one because the pictures are cool and the dragon looks great. This is one of my favorite books. I like it because the dragon is a good character and the prince looks better than in most books.