The Saint of Dragons [Hardcover]

Jason Hightman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 17, 2004

The ancient dragons -- of the time of the legendary Saint George and earlier -- have never disappeared entirely. Instead, they've moved undercover -- and into human society. Now one lonely schoolboy is about to learn where the dragons have gone ...

Educated at boarding schools, Simon St. George has never met his parents. When a ragged-looking man shows up claiming to be his father, Simon is skeptical, and when the man kidnaps him, he's indignant to say the least.

Then the man claims to be a descendant of England's Saint George and a career dragon fighter. Why should Simon believe any of this nonsense? But what if the man is telling the truth? What if the dragons know he's out there?

Rich with the dragon lore of legend, the saint of dragons continues and enlarges on the tale of the centuries-old conflict between dragons and humans that rages even today.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–Simon St. George attends an elite boarding school and hasn't seen or heard from his parents in 11 years. Then one October day, a greasy-haired, ragged, and dirt-ridden man shows up on campus claiming to be his father. Before 24 hours pass, Simon finds himself abducted by this odd stranger and about to be initiated into the family business–dragon-hunting. The man explains that "the Dragon is the source of all that is rotten in the world," and that since the time of the legendary St. George of England, his descendants have been dragon-hunters. Now 13-year-old Simon is needed to join the fight. What ensues is a long series of sword-and-sorcery adventures heavy on action and light on plot–much like a video game, comic strip, or feature-length cartoon written in short sentences and simple language but without the pictures. The setting is contemporary and decidedly dark. Dragons and humans alike, with the exception of Simon, have all the subtlety of cartoon characters. His father is not exactly a noble knight, showing as little tact and feeling in his dealings with friends and family as with his sworn enemies. The cover of this book is reminiscent of Christopher Paolini's Eragon (Knopf, 2003), but readers who expect the depth and complexity of contemporary popular high fantasy will be disappointed. Those who prefer the macabre outlook and less demanding style of Darren Shan's "Cirque du Freak" series (Little, Brown) might enjoy The Saint of Dragons.–Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-8. Hightman postulates that dragons, which harbor a "vast desire to do harm," exist throughout the world today, living among humans by clouding minds so people don't see the beasts in their true form. Simon St. George is a loner at an elite academy, sent there by parents he does not know. His father, Aldric St. George, the last Knight of the Order of Dragonhunters, learns Simon is in danger and retrieves the boy to help fight dragons. Their quest takes them around the world to confront the White Dragon of New York City, the Water Dragon of Venice, the Parisian Dragon, the Russian Red Dragon, and the Black Dragon of China, and eventually all the dragons together in one place for a cataclysmic climax. Filled with dragon lore and nonstop action, the humor-laced story is preposterous to be sure, but readers willing to suspend disbelief will enjoy going along on the adventure. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Eos; First Edition first Printing edition (August 17, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060540117
• ISBN-13: 978-0060540111
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,042,927 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Could have been better, August 31, 2004

By 

Jay - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Saint of Dragons (Hardcover)

I liked the idea driving the plot - dragons exist in the modern world, and they live among us. However, the book failed to grab me, like I hoped it would. The dragons never really developed as a sufficiently scary threat, and the relationships between the main characters did not develop in a realistic way. I'll give it three stars, because it is by a first-time author.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars dragon hunter, December 26, 2004

By 

Melissa Sack (georgia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Saint of Dragons (Hardcover)

Simon St Saint George is alone in the world. He has never known his parents and has been left at boarding school for years. His life is uneventful until one day a man claiming to be his father shows up at the school and kidnaps him. His father tells him all about his past and his mother. It turns out that his father is the last remaining dragon hunter and he has come to show Simon the dragon hunter way of life. The rest of the book is all about the adventures that he and his father have while trying to kill all of the dragons in the world.


The book moved at a fast pace. It was a real page turner. Hard to put down.



I would recommend this book to children ages 10-12 who enjoy fantasy type books.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for kids, December 6, 2005

By 

stefanie - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Saint of Dragons (Hardcover)

I thought this book was ok. I did enjoy it, but I felt that both the plot and the characters needed more depth. HOWEVER-my 9 year old son and my 11 year old daughter both LOVED it. In fact, I only read it because they both recommended it and because they had enjoyed it so much. The book seems to satisfy the age level for which it was written- and isn't that the point?