Dragon stories

Who wouldn't want a dragon friend?

These stories are all written for children and teenagers but I have listed them by reading ability starting with the easiest.

Lily Quench and the dragon of Ashby by Natalie Jane Porter. This series, written for younger readers, is about Lily Quench the last descendent of a family of dragon slayers. When Lily, a young girl, is sent off to kill the Dragon of Ashby instead of slaying her she finds a friend who helps her defeat the Black Count. Lots of fun with a wise and sympathetic dragon at its heart.

How to train your dragon by Cressida Cowell. Hiccup is the son of the Chief but he is a weedy small boy who would rather use brains than brawn. When all the boys have to take a dragon to train Hiccup ends up with the smallest and weediest dragon who will do nothing he is told to do. How will Hiccup solve this problem and come out on top? This series is quite different to the film, extremely funny and with a huge range of dragons. They are best read in order especially as the story gets quite complex in the later books.

Dragon Princess by E D Baker.  Millie the princess turns into a dragon when she gets cross. How will she ever find her true love? Lots of fun with fairytale references and unusual twists this is a delightful read.

Dragon rider by Cornelia Funke.  Firedrake, a brave young dragon, his loyal brownie friend Sorrel and a lonely boy called Ben are united as if by destiny. Together, they embark on a magical journey to find the legendary place where silver dragons can live in peace for ever.  Quite a big book but a wonderful story.

Dragon slippers by Jessica Day George. Creel is offered as a sacrifice to a dragon byt instead becomes his friend. She is given the slippers as a reward but they hide a nasty secret. dragons have been mistreated in this book but together with Creel's help they defeat the evil that has been attacking them. They are also delightfully unusual creatures in this series and some of the more memorable I have read about. (This book is also pulished as Dragonskin slippers.)

Dealing with dragons by Patricia Wrede.  Rather than marry a boring prince, Princess Cimerone runs away from her kingdom and becomes an assistant to the dragon Kazul.  This is the first in a trilogy about Cimerone. There is a fourth book which is about her children.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini. When Eragon finds a polished stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy; perhaps it will buy his family meat for the winter. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. Overnight his simple life is shattered and he is thrust into a perilous new world of destiny, magic and power. With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and the fledgling dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds. Can Eragon take up the mantle of the legendary Dragon Riders? The fate of the Empire may rest in his hands...

Adult books.

Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey. The men who rode the dragons were a breed apart. Chosen when the dragons were first hatched, they became soulmates for life with the huge, magnificent beasts they controlled - the green, blue, brown and bronzes - beautiful - terrible - the only creatures who could defend the planet Pern from the blood-red star. But without the Queen, the dragons would become extinct. Only the gigantic, golden Queen could breed the new flights. And the Queen was fading . . . dying . . . leaving behind one last, huge, golden egg. Dragonflight is the first book in Anne McCaffrey's Chronicles of Pern .

Temararire by Naomi Novak.  After a skirmish with a French ship, Captain Will Laurence finds himself in charge of a rare cargo: a dragon egg bound for the Emperor himself. Dragons are much prized: properly trained, they can mount a fearsome attack from the skies. One of Laurence's men must take the beast in hand and join the aviators' cause, thus relinquishing all hope of a normal life. But when the newly-hatched dragon ignores the young midshipman Laurence chose as its keeper and decides to imprint itself on the horrified captain instead, Laurence's world falls apart. Gone is his golden future: gone his social standing, and soon his beautiful fiancée, as he is consigned to be the constant companion and trainer of the fighting dragon Temeraire… Wonderful series set during the Napoleonic wars.

Books I haven't read yet

Dragon born by Toby Forward. When Flaxfield the great wizard dies, his apprentice Sam is left without a master. As the wizards gather for his Finishing, Sam does not know whom to trust and whom he should fear. He sets off alone with only his dragon Starback for company, little realizing the perils that lie in wait. This powerful opening book of the Flaxfield Quartet is an adventure story told with great lyricism and power.

No such thing as dragons by Philip Reeve. A dragon story with a brilliant twist. Ansel's new master slays dragons for a living. He says he's hunted the monstrous worms all over Christendom and has the scars to prove it. But is Brock just a clever trickster in shining armour? Ansel is sure there are no such things as dragons. So what is the man-eating creature that makes its lair in the crags of Dragon Mountain? Ansel and Brock must climb the ice face to discover the terrifying truth.