The Dragon and the Stone by Kathryn Butler

 


Castles and dragons and mystery abound in the new middle-grade fantasy book, The Dragon and the Stone by Kathryn Butler. 

The Dragon and the Stone begins with Lily McKinley finding a dragon named Cedric in her kitchen eating her dinner. Things start to get really crazy for Lily after she confronts a bully named Adam in her school yard and the a stone pendent that belonged to her father, who recently passed away is now glowing, and she is transported to a magical place with the magic pendent when she puts it on. 

I enjoyed this magical book even though I don't read a lot of fantasy. It would be a fun book to read as a family. There are themes of faith, mourning, sacrifice, salvation, and redemption. The Dragon and the Stone has some fun characters and is a wonderful adventure into a magical land. I enjoyed the characters and the surprises along the way. There were some points that would make for some great family discussion. While it is a fun book as a whole, there are also some deeper issues dealt with in this book--bullying, divorce, and death among them. At the end of the book, there is a chapter preview for the next book in the series, The Prince and the Blight--which whets the reader's appetite to keep going.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher as part of the Amazon Vine program. All opinions within this review are my own.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

5-Minute Bedtime Treasury by Hannah C. Hall Illustrated by Steve Whitlow

Image
The 5-Minute Bedtime Treasury by Hannah C. Hall is a beautifully illustrated children's book with some fun rhyming stories inside it. Measuring roughly 8 1/4 inches square it is a fun size to read in bed together. This story book is aimed at pre-school children up to age 4. There is one story that talks about going to school so kindergarten children may enjoy it as well. There are six stories in the 5-Minute Bedtime Treasury.  God Bless You and Good Night God Bless My Friends God Bless My School God Bless My Family God Bless My Home All of these stories are illustrated by Steve Whitlow with what I would call softly-vibrant pictures. The pictures look soft and warm and yet are vibrant in color. I think they are just gorgeous and well liked by children. Then all of these stories are nicely written in a rhyming style that is truely a pleasure to read and fun for children to listen to.  The 5-Minute Bedtime Treasury could be a fun baby gift or a gift for a young child, besides buying
Read more

Essential Speed Reading Techniques: How to become a Better, Faster Reader by Katya Seberson

Image
Essential Speed Reading Techniques by Katya Seberson is a small book that could pack a big punch in your reading life. Essential Speed Reading Techniques starts out by explaining what speed reading is and what it is not. If you thought speed reading was just skimming a book like I did, Seberson will define what it really means in this book and how to use it to your full advantage. While I read this book, I am not yet a better, faster reader. I am improving, but as the author shares, this is a process that takes time and is a skill worth learning. Seberson offers both advice and practice exercises in this book to help you learn and grow into the reader you want to be. I was impressed with Essential Speed Reading Techniques . I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone who wants to be a better reader. I think that as I use the techniques in this book that I will continue to improve in both my reading time and my comprehension. Essential Speed Reading Techniques releas
Read more

Who Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up? by Paula Faris Illustrated by Bhagya Madanasinghe

Image
  I think there has always been a lot of pressure on adults and children to "do" something big with their lives in the way of career. We do often ask children, What do you want to Do When you Grow up?" Who Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up? by Paula Faris changes the tone and the outlook for children with this book. I am not sure I can begin to tell you how much I love this book, but I will try. Who Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up? has beautiful bright illustrations. I also love that the illustrations are inclusive and show children of all colors, cultures and backgrounds. I think that background adds to the appeal of the book. This is a large children's book, measuring about 9 1/4 by 9 3/4 inches in size and 32 pages long. It is aimed at children ages four to eight but it really is a timeless message that could appeal to people of all ages.   Who Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up? features a girl named Lina who doesn't know what she wants to "be&quo
Read more