Customer Reviews

The New Kid at School (Dragon Slayers' Academy, No. 1)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My son and I discovered this whole series of books when he was a first grader...perfect for him to read as a second grader now. In the spirit of Harry Potter and the Hobbit but not so complex that kid's lose the story line. Full of jokes and adventure, I cannot recommend these any more strongly for the 7 to 10 age group (depending on reading ability). We've had two impressive endorsements:

When we first began reading about Wiglaf, it was on a plane to Colorado. As I read to my son, I realized that other children were tuning in to the story. Several parents asked for the book titles and the author when we landed.

Also, late last year I read books 1-3 for a first grade class and have since read to the second grade. The library has been unable to keep two full sets in stock and the teachers have purchased their own sets. It has taken reading by storm as boys and girls strive to finish the series.

Oh yeah, and adults will get a private chuckle out of the humor and wordplay from time to time.

I wanted to introduce my 5yr old(soon to be 6) son to chapter books. When I read him the introduction from the back of the book he was certain that this was the one he wanted. We started reading it on a Friday at bedtime and were finished by monday morning. We usually only read it at night but Sunday night we were just getting to the dragon slying scene and he could not wait until bedtime Monday night. We already have books 1-4 and he loves it so much that he is wanting all the books in the series. I am glad that he choose this series. The story draws you in and you cannot wait to see what is going to happen to Wiglaf next. It is complex enough to keep you interested, without being overcomplex for young children.

Like Harry Potter, Wiglaf starts off in a less than favorable existence with surrogate parents and gets the fortuitous chance to leave home for an unconventional medieval-like school. The humor mostly centers around the headmaster of this Dragonslayer's Academy being greedy and saving money by feeding the kids eels, the absentmindedness of a wizard that Wiglaf meets along the way, and Wiglaf's fear of dragons and violence in general. The plot is mostly Wiglaf trying to figure out the weakness of a dragon that Wiglaf has to fight, and the revelation at the end that the weakness is no magic item or weapon but something rather silly and midly amusing. The books are basically modern style weekly cartoons in written form, which might be a good thing to start out reluctant readers on who have not yet tackled chapter books. However, I found the illustrations a tad low quality for the amount of focus placed on them and the 9 to 12 age group is kind of stretching it. It's better suited to maybe the 6 to 10 crowd.

I bought this for my 5-year-old to see if a Chapter book would keep his attention. This one sure does. He keeps trying new ways to convince me to read additional chapters each night. I just ordered the next book in the series and he can not wait for it to arrive!

The New Kid at School by K.H. McMullin

Did you ever want to go to a Dragon Slayers
Academy? The New Kid at School By K.H. McMullin
is about a kid named Wiglaf who goes to the
Dragon Slayers Academy (DSA) and all of the
adventures he goes on.
I recomend this book to you because it will
give you a chance to go to a DSA. I learned that
dreams can come true.

The New Kid at School, is from the series of Dragon Slayers Academy. I liked it and I give it 4 stars. The reason I liked it a lot, is because it has a lot of adventure and risks. There was a fight with a dragon, and Wigalaf, the main character wins with knock knock jokes. Wiglaf is a kid who lives in a very small house with 7 people. When Wigalaf sees someone hurt or cold he invites him in to the house. One day a man that works for the Dragon Slaying school comes into their house and asks,"Would any of you like to join Dragon Slayers Academy?". All the older brothers reply "NO! NO!". All except Wigalaf, Wigalaf said, "I do! I do!". When Wigalaf says this, the man replies "No, you can't hurt a fly, but come on, let the boy come." So Wigalaf heads off to Dragon Slayers Academy. You'll just have to read to find out what happens next?

Each year many of the students in our school are new, some coming from shelters while some simpy move around the city where our school is located. All of the students can relate to the main character. This is a fast read and the students love it. I can not keep this series on the bookshelves we have 2 and 3 compies of most of the titles. A great book that keeps the students wondering.

My 8 yr old son, & 7 yr old nephew have been caught with flashlights reading this series after lights out. Any book that can spark the love of reading in young boys is necessary today. I strongly suggest buying the series.

I enjoy reading the volumes in this series almost as much as my 5-year-old son enjoys hearing them read. Kate McMullan is a talented writer who displays wonderful wit and skill but also a great deal of heart. The Dragon Slayers' Academy books are a mixture of Harry Potter, Roald Dahl, and even (dare I say it?) the old Harvard Lampoon parody, "Bored of the Rings".

I should warn that my son does occasionally have difficulty following some of the dialogue and narratives (at which points, I simply pause to offer quick explanations or glosses). Also, there have been a couple of spots where gore becomes a concern (for example, the executioner's song in book 3).

The lively illustrations as well as the humorous "DSA Yearbook" (including a "campus" map) are great bonuses.

I think that this book (and the series) is an excellent step along the path toward, say, Harry Potter or the Hobbit, but will also be treasured (and re-read) on its own right.

the book is one of the best book i have ever read. If you like harry potter you would like this as much as harry potter. Its kind of like harry potter think about it he finds two friends erica (a.k.a. secret princess who is trying to sneek in to the school for boys only.) Then there is angus the anvenger. he is the nephew of the very greedy headmaster who doesn't really like wiglaf. another reason it's like harry potter is that he doesn't really like were he lives but a old man comes and tell wiglaf that one day he will be a hero. so he is off to dragon slayers' academy not nowing the great adventer that awaits him.