Merlin and the Dragons (Picture Puffins) (Paperback)

by Jane Yolen (Author), Li Ming (Illustrator) "THE NIGHT was dark and storm clouds marched along the sky, Rain beat against the gray castle walls..." (more)
Key Phrases: white dragon, High King

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Merlin tells young Arthur a tale of a boy who prophesies a dragon duel. Dramatic oil paintings match the story's epic scale. Ages 5-up.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 3-5?Drawing once again upon Arthurian legend, Yolen has created a stirring tale within a tale. Young Arthur wakes one stormy night from uneasy dreams and seeks out the company of Merlin. Sensing the boy's readiness to learn of his legacy in claiming the crown he wears without conviction, Merlin tells him of another fatherless boy, Emrys, who dreamed baffling dreams of dragons and crumbling stone towers. When the cruel Vortigern attempted to take over all of Britain, Emrys's dreams became prophetic and catalytic. Merlin ends his tale cryptically, as a certain knight advances toward Vortigern's tower. When Arthur cries out for a proper ending, Merlin draws him into the story and it becomes revelatory?at last he is able to call the crown his own. Yolen goes beyond her sources?folklore and history?and moves expertly into the realm of invention. Matched with arresting oil paintings, the legend comes alive on a grand scale, the dramatic narrative and well-wrought dialogue heightening the theatrical effect and inviting a fast-paced read-aloud. Some of Ming's illustrations are magnificent, those of the dragons in particular. One can sense this talented artist's respect for these creatures as he brings them fully to life?terrifying, violent, beautiful. So, too, does he paint Arthur with great sensitivity, a figure bathed in light, his face complex, thoughtful, and full of wonder. Although all the pictures serve the story well and elevate the drama, some seem a bit flat and overexplicit, without the pulsing life and radiance that characterizes those that are invested with emotion and are remarkable for their power.
Susan Powers, Rock Creek Forest Elementary School, Chevy Chase, MD
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Paperback: 40 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140558918
• ISBN-13: 978-0140558913
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.2 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #251,497 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

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

By A Customer

(...)

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 Must Read, June 2, 2004

By A Customer

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.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Merlin and the Dragons, December 13, 2002

A Kid's Review

This book you are about to read,will have knights ,dragons,merlin,and kings. this bookis called Merlin adn the Dragons. It is a fantasy book that is made up. The authoris Jane Yolen. It is also illstrated by Li Ming. It has thirtyfour pages in it.
The setting in my book is back in king Aurthers time in a whole bunch of places where there were two dragons eggs and everytime they breath in and out the tower would fall and crumblb to the growned. The story is about dragons and knights, kings and one merlin.They take this kid with them one day at a time and the kid with them for one day and he gets to choose what he wants to be.
I can give you three reasons why I like this book.One it has the stuff that I like.Two is about stuff that my mom likes and threae itha merlins and dragons in it.
I think that peole should read this book because ithas lots of cool pictures. But this is the most important thing is it has cool stuff like the dragons and knights.