How to Train Your Dragon [Hardcover]

Cressida Cowell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2004 | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: How to Train Your Dragon

Chronicles the adventures and misadventures of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III as he tries to pass the important initiation test of his Viking clan, the Tribe of the Hairy Hooligans, by catching and training a dragon.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this riotous paper-over-board farce, the timid protagonist from Cowell's picture book Hiccup: The Seasick Viking proves himself worthy of the sobriquet "Hope and Heir to the Tribe of the Hairy Hooligans." The protagonist is also given author credit (as Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III), with Cowell billed as translator "from the Old Norse." Indeed, "Hiccup" contributes an introductory note: "I was not the sort of boy who could train a dragon with a mere lifting of an eyebrow. I was not a natural at the Heroism business. I had to work at it. This is the story of becoming a Hero the Hard Way." From his initial challenge—Hiccup and his fellow warriors-in-training must each pluck a dragon from a "Dragon Nursery" where 3,000 young critters are hibernating—the likable lad faces a host of hurdles and beats tremendous odds to emerge triumphant. After selecting a tiny, toothless dragon ("I shall call [my dragon] Fireworm," says nemesis Snotface Snotlout. "What are you going to call yours, Hiccup? Sweetums? Sugarlips? Babyface?"). Hiccup tackles the chore of training the stubborn creature, which leads to some fresh, funny dialogue between the two (Hiccup has the rare ability to speak "Dragonese"). A rollicking finale finds the duo rescuing Vikings from a ravenous, mountain-size dragon. Short chapters, clever slapstick, kid-pleasing character names (e.g., Fishlegs, Dogsbreath the Duhbrain) and goofy, childlike drawings will keep even reluctant readers turning these pages—and chuckling as they go. Ages 8-12.
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From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5–Young Hiccup may be the son of Stoick the Vast, chief of the Hairy Hooligans, but he isn't exactly heroic Viking material. When he and the other boys of his tribe are sent on a mission to fetch dragons to train, Hiccup comes back with the scrawniest creature ever seen. Toothless, as Hiccup names him, is also rude, lazy, and greedy, but when the tribe is faced with horrible danger, Hiccup's unorthodox dragon-training techniques prove successful and he and his unique beast become true heroes. Sprinkled throughout with funny sketches, scribbles, and ink blots, this is a goofy and exciting tale of an underdog who proves that brains can be just as important as brawn. Kids will hoot at the ridiculous names and sympathize with Hiccup's exasperation with his truly obstinate but strangely lovable dragon. A delightful read that fans of Ian Whybrow's "Little Wolf" series (Carolrhoda) will particularly enjoy.–Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; First US Edition edition (May 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316737372
• ISBN-13: 978-0316737371
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #26,574 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #58 in Books > Children's Books > Fairy Tales, Folk Tales & Myths > Dragons

More About the Author

Cressida Cowell grew up mostly in Central London. She has a BA in English Literature from Oxford University, a BA in Graphic Design from St Martin's and an MA in Narrative Illustration from Brighton. Cressida loves illustrating her own work, but also loves writing books for other people to illustrate as the end result can be so unexpected and inspiring. Cressida has written and illustrated eight books in the popular Hiccup series. The unique blend of child centred humour and sublime prose made Hiccup an instant hit. How to Train Your Dragon has reached over 100,000 sales and is now published in over 30 languages. A Dreamworks feature film is due to be released in 2010. Also the author of picture books, Cressida has won the Nestle Children's Book Prize 2006 and has been shortlisted for many others. Cressida lives in Hammersmith with her husband, three children and two cats.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Fun For Kids & Adults Alike!, August 1, 2006

By 

Michele Rempe "Unreformed Bibliophile" (Malvern, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Train Your Dragon (Hardcover)

This book is the first in a series about a group of young boys embarking on a journey to become part of their village's viking clan. The boys must each capture a dragon and train it. The book is surprisingly engaging and very funny. The characters speak as you would imagine young vikings would - crude little-boy speak about snot and such, the dragons speak their own language, which you can learn throughout books in this series, and the author's narrative is sublime literary prose. With this blend, Cowell has the most unique literary style I have ever read! Parents will love the quick pace and unique style, boys will think it's cool, and girls will giggle.

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More fun than you will think!, April 26, 2006

By 

C. Buechler (Mason, MI United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Train Your Dragon (Hardcover)

This book looks younger than it really is in both vocabulary and humor. My ten year old girl read it and loved it. The humor is very entertaining. I read it to my 8 year old son at bedtime as well and we all enjoyed it. I recommend this book for 7-12 year old children.

42 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Watch out for bad editions, January 11, 2006

By 

M. Hutfles - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Train Your Dragon (Hardcover)

The book is fantastic, great story fun illustrations and a great read-a-loud.
However... There are some bad copies of it floating around where a group of pages are doubled up and a group of pages are missing. If you order this wonderful gem, be sure to check the pages around 121-152. Unfortunately this is at one of the very exciting parts of the story so best to find out before beginning reading.
Fortunately the publisher is very friendly and helpful about replacing mis-produced books and you just have to contact their customer service to remedy the situation.
So do enjoy this little treasure.