mehsi's review against another edition
4.0
"Zog, the biggest dragon, was the keenest one by far.
He tried his hardest every day to win a golden star."
I was at first very much enthusiastic about this, a book about dragons? An accident prone one even? Oh my, yes, sign me up. But then I noticed the sticker. This was by the same person who made The Gruffalo? Mmmm, I didn't like that book. Should I continue? I choose for yes.
It kind of had the same problem as I had with The Gruffalo, the blurb. The blurb in that one spoils everything, and in this one it doesn't seem correct. Accident prone? We only see things go wrong once per year that goes by. But we barely see any bruises on him each new year, nor plasters, or anything. And those accidents that happen during training? Well, I wouldn't call him accident prone at all. He just works so hard, so much, that naturally he would go bump against things or his throat will stop working and start hurting. That is what happens if you go at something for hours and hours. Maybe someone should read up again on what accident prone is.
But I am happy that this book goes beyond its blurb. So I am giving points for that.
Who the girl was, well, I certainly had an idea (one of the many, including a theory that she was magical as she is always appearing magically when Zog needs her). I also loved what she did later on, that is pretty nice of her. Then again, the dragons weren't so scary, I would also pick what the girl did. And as for the end, being a doctor sounds way more fun than prancing and wearing fancy dresses all day.
It was great seeing the dragons grow up. From tiny-ish dragons to full grown dragons in the last year.
The ending was pretty great, I loved the solution (as I was already worried about the fight and who would win), and it was wonderful to see the dragons and humans team up to make something awesome.
The book also rhymes, and it certainly made the book more fun (and at times funny).
The art was pretty OK. Not entirely my style (it is a bit too stiff for my liking), but I still like the details and again, seeing the illustrator draw the dragons more grown-up with each year was fun. I also like the colours used for each dragon.
All in all, quite a fun book to read, even if I am a bit disappointed in the accident prone stuff, I would have loved to see a dragon get through life in a clumsy way.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
He tried his hardest every day to win a golden star."
I was at first very much enthusiastic about this, a book about dragons? An accident prone one even? Oh my, yes, sign me up. But then I noticed the sticker. This was by the same person who made The Gruffalo? Mmmm, I didn't like that book. Should I continue? I choose for yes.
It kind of had the same problem as I had with The Gruffalo, the blurb. The blurb in that one spoils everything, and in this one it doesn't seem correct. Accident prone? We only see things go wrong once per year that goes by. But we barely see any bruises on him each new year, nor plasters, or anything. And those accidents that happen during training? Well, I wouldn't call him accident prone at all. He just works so hard, so much, that naturally he would go bump against things or his throat will stop working and start hurting. That is what happens if you go at something for hours and hours. Maybe someone should read up again on what accident prone is.
But I am happy that this book goes beyond its blurb. So I am giving points for that.
Who the girl was, well, I certainly had an idea (one of the many, including a theory that she was magical as she is always appearing magically when Zog needs her). I also loved what she did later on, that is pretty nice of her. Then again, the dragons weren't so scary, I would also pick what the girl did. And as for the end, being a doctor sounds way more fun than prancing and wearing fancy dresses all day.
It was great seeing the dragons grow up. From tiny-ish dragons to full grown dragons in the last year.
The ending was pretty great, I loved the solution (as I was already worried about the fight and who would win), and it was wonderful to see the dragons and humans team up to make something awesome.
The book also rhymes, and it certainly made the book more fun (and at times funny).
The art was pretty OK. Not entirely my style (it is a bit too stiff for my liking), but I still like the details and again, seeing the illustrator draw the dragons more grown-up with each year was fun. I also like the colours used for each dragon.
All in all, quite a fun book to read, even if I am a bit disappointed in the accident prone stuff, I would have loved to see a dragon get through life in a clumsy way.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
vikki13's review against another edition
5.0
This book is loved in our house by both myself and my daughter. I like that the princess in this book is motivated to go out and do something (be a doctor) rather than sit around in pretty dresses and wait for someone to rescue her. My daughter is also a fan of dragons so this a fun story for her that isn't trying to make the dragon too scary (she is 2).
floneill's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
daniellesalwaysreading's review against another edition
3.0
A dragon named Zog attends dragon school and wants to be the best he can be. He has help from a young lady who turns out to be a princess but really wants to be a doctor. This is sort of a strange story, super random but without the humor that I usually expect from a story like that. The saving grace is that it has a message that it is ok to go against societal expectations, which I always like.
dash_dash's review against another edition
4.0
Bought it for the nieces, ended up reading it myself. That's life.
Just an overall great story and beautiful illustrations
Just an overall great story and beautiful illustrations
katieejayne's review against another edition
4.0
Another picture book? I know. I've been reading more of the recently for my Children's Lit class and honestly really enjoying my time reading them. I picked up Zog to help with one of my assignments and it's just such a cute story. I can't remember being read any Julia Donaldson when I was younger but they're still popular and continue to sell today. Zog is one of the newer stories from her and possibly the sweetest.
Zog is learning to be a dragon, how to roar, fly and breathe fire but he struggles with all of it. For a picture book, it has a few morals sprinkled throughout but this kind of book tends to. It's all about persevering, making friends and not judging someone. I'm very tempted to get the follow up simply so I can read it!
Zog is an adorable little dragon too. I love how he's been illustrated. Axel Scheffler has a very distinct style!
www.a-novel-idea.co.uk
Zog is learning to be a dragon, how to roar, fly and breathe fire but he struggles with all of it. For a picture book, it has a few morals sprinkled throughout but this kind of book tends to. It's all about persevering, making friends and not judging someone. I'm very tempted to get the follow up simply so I can read it!
Zog is an adorable little dragon too. I love how he's been illustrated. Axel Scheffler has a very distinct style!
www.a-novel-idea.co.uk
daisycakesco's review against another edition
3.0
I can't help but think that this would have been a better story had the author not bothered with making it a rhyming book. The story in general was fun, but the rhymes were SO FORCED.