RAISING DRAGONS

Nolen (Harvey Potter’s Balloon Farm, 1994) unearths some unique livestock in this tale of a farmer’s daughter who braves her parents’ skepticism to hatch and raise a flying, fire-breathing dragon. Initially no bigger than a sheep, Hank the dragon grows to the size of a barn; even though he is a sloppy eater, he proves handy around the farm, popping a whole field of corn all at once and raising tomatoes that a neighbor claims cured her gout. In Primavera’s glowing acrylics, Hank looms like an iridescent Dinosaur Bob over his bright-eyed, pig-tailed companion, smiling with a puppy-like friendliness as he listens to a bedtime story or catches sight of a gigantic eel pot pie coming his way. Public attention eventually forces him to move to the volcanic island where the other dragons live, but he leaves behind a wheelbarrow full of glowing eggs as a parting present. A fresh and cheery tall tale, told in an appropriately matter-of-fact tone. (Picture book. 6-9)