Merlin and the Dragons [Unabridged] [Audible Audio Edition]

by Jane Yolen (Author), Kevin Kline (Narrator)

Editorial Reviews

Young Arthur doesn't understand why pulling a sword from a stone qualifies him for kingship. Old Merlin tells him a story of his childhood, when he first learned to trust in himself: a story about fighting dragons, clashing armies, and a young boy's prophetic dreams. Merlin's story inspires young Arthur with the confidence he will need to become a great king.

Masterfully narrated by film star Kevin Kline

Product Details

• Audible Audio Edition
• Listening Length: 37 minutes
• Program Type: Audiobook
• Version: Unabridged
• Publisher: Lightyear Entertainment
• Audible.com Release Date: December 16, 1999
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0000546WX
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Really Good Book, June 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Merlin and the Dragons (Picture Puffins) (Mass Market Paperback)

(...)

Merlin and the Dragons is a very good book, because there are dragons in this book. Dragons are my favorite animals because they breathe fire, and they look cool.
There were lots of cool action scenes. My favorite action scene was when the tower falls because the dragon's eggs are rumbling.
The illustrations looked real. The illustrations helped me understand the book, because the words aren't very descriptive.
I recommend this book for 7 to 70 years old.
The theme is that some people are sometimes alike.
There were lots of conflicts. There were dragons fighting. And there were kings fighting the dragons.
These are some of the characters. There were the kings armies; they were really strong, because they killed a dragon. There were two dragons, they had red and white scales, long tales, and they breath fire. The king has a gold crown.
Now I will tell you some of the story. Once upon a time there was a boy named Arthur he did not want to be a king yet. One day he had a bad dream so he went to Merlin. Merlin told him a story about another boy, who's a king too, and he wanted to build a watchtower. And the king's workers finished building it and the next day it fell down, then the king's workers built it again and again but it still fell.
Later the king's workers dug under the rocks and they found two dragon's eggs, then the king's workers smashed the eggs and the eggs hatched into fierce dragons.
If you want to know the end read the book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Arthur Learned About his Father, April 4, 2009

By 

Marco Antonio Abarca (Colorado) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Merlin and the Dragons (Hardcover)

The King Arthur legend is a treasure trove of children's stories. The worst way to approach the legend is to try to tell the whole story in one book. The legend is just too rich with detail for this approach to work. It is better to select individual stories and rework them for children.

This is the approach Jane Yolen uses in "Merlin and the Dragon". The story takes place soon after Arthur has pulled the sword out of the stone and centers on how Merlin revealed to Arthur that he is the son of Uther Pendragon. The book is well written and beautifully illustrated and is a pleasure for both adults and children. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read, June 2, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Merlin and the Dragons (Picture Puffins) (Mass Market Paperback)

It is about a boy named Emrys. He lives in a small village. One day a cruel and ruthless king named Vortigern wanted to build a watchtower in the village. He told the men to work as slaves to build the tower. When they had finished building the tower it fell! So they built it again and it fell again. What they needed was Emrys's blood. When the guards had found the right child Emrys told them that you needed to kill two dragons. They dug a hole where the dragons lived.
I don't want to tell you what happens next. You'll have to read the fantastic book Merlin and the Dragons. What I liked about the book is that it had a lot of verbs, adjectives, and nouns. What I liked about the illustrations was that they had a lot of detail. I liked the characters because they were greatly drawn and they were very cool. It was a great book and I really enjoyed it. I would compare this book to MERLIN. What ages I would recommend are 6 and up it is also a great read aloud book. The moral of the book is even if you are different you can make a change.