THE BOY WHO LIVED WITH DRAGONS

Growing dragons cause mischief to flourish.

Young Tomas guards an important secret: a dragon fruit tree in his Grandad’s garden sprouts fruit that hatches into actual, living dragons. Tomas’ dragon, Flicker, is his small, constant companion and can change into a dazzling rainbow of colors. His best friends—Ted, Kat, and Kai—also have dragons that possess their own special abilities, like breathing ice. While the kids try to keep their wily winged pets concealed, the dragons cause silly mayhem. But soon, as more strange events occur, the group begins to wonder: Could their nemesis, Liam, also have a dragon? Once Liam’s ulterior motives are uncovered, Tomas and his friends must stop him before his ego threatens the safety of their own dragons. Shepherd’s feel-good friendship tale has an endearingly nostalgic feel as the gang adventures, hangs out, and cracks jokes with nary an electronic doodad in sight. The outdoors factors in prominently, with gentle warnings about the harm done by pesticides. This follow-up to The Boy Who Grew Dragons (2020) is an accessible jumping-in point for new readers, providing enough worldbuilding (and well-timed potty humor) to be inviting. Ogilvie’s black-and-white illustrations are absolutely adorable and, coupled with the clever marginalia (such as pages that appear singed), make for heightened visual interest. Most characters read as White; Ted has darker skin and curly black hair.

Silly and sweet, with a throwback feel.