Welcome to Perfect Picture Book Friday, Everyone!
Wait ’til you see the gorgeous book I have to share with you today! I dare you not to love it! 🙂
Title: Dragon Night
Written & Illustrated By: J. R. Krause
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books For Young Readers, January 22 2019, fiction
Suitable For Ages: 3-7
Themes/Topics: friendship, kindness, childhood fears (nighttime), word play
Opening: “Georgie is afraid of the night.
It’s too dark with the lights off.
Too quiet with everyone asleep.
And being alone makes everything worse.”
Brief Synopsis: Georgie is afraid of the night. The dragon is afraid of the knight. The dragon knows just how to help Georgie overcome his fear, and the two set off on a unforgettable adventure. But when the morning comes, Georgie feels better about the night, but the dragon is still afraid of the knight. How can Georgie help his friend?
Links To Resources: Make Your Own Night Light; write your own story for the dragon the way Georgie does – what items would you include? what setting? Make Dragon Egg Sugar Cookies! 😊
Why I Like This Book: Lots of kids are afraid of the dark and the night, so this charming story is sure to be relatable and I think any child will find it comforting. It’s a lovely story for bedtime.
The combination of text and illustration hits the exact magical note that makes a picture book truly perfect. Both Georgie and the Dragon are appealing characters (I hope no one misses that his name is Georgie 😊 ), and the story is one of kindness, empathy, and understanding.
My favorite part, aside from the lovely relationship that develops between the two, and getting to see the knight from the dragon’s point of view, is the fact that Georgie’s solution involves creative writing – what a great model for young readers! 😊
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 😊
For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.
PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific links (and any other info you feel like filling out 😊 ) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!! 😊
Susanna Leonard Hill 
This looks like a wonderful book!
Afraid of the Knight! How fun. I love the color palate.
Sounds like a great book for helping children overcome their fear of the dark. I love that it encourages creative writing too.
You have a wonderful weekend too!
The boy afraid of the night and the dragon afraid of the knight…so clever. Thank you, Susanna!
Looking forward to reading this book!
The title intrigued me before I even read your description…and now I want to find it even more. Thanks for featuring this one!
What a nice way to look at two perspectives.
So clever!
What a perfect bedtime story. Clever wordplay and beautiful artwork. Perfect book to gift.
Susanna,
Something went wrong when I entered my linky for my review. I posted it again. Will you delete the first on A Common Thirst. Thanks.
Love how the solution involves writing! And yes, these illustrations add a magical touch. They almost look like woodcut prints. Really lovely!
It’s a great book! I love that they are both afraid of the night (Knight) and that Georgie solves the problem by writing a new ending! Thank you!
Love the illustrations on your choice for PPBF Susanna, and also the play on words will make for a fun read.
I don’t think I’ve read this one. Looks wonderful. I just put it on hold at the library.
I stumbled on The Reluctant Dragon (the Kenneth Grahame short story, not the Disney movie) during COVID and loved it! Now, I can’t wait to read this one! Thank you for sharing Susanna!
🙂
Ingrid