A Dragon Used to Live Here by Annette LeBlanc Cate

A Dragon Used to Live Here Reviews

• 
  Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance

  The children of the castle, Thomas and Emily, meet Meg, an old friend of their mother's. Meg tells the two children stories of their mother's youth, especially about the time their mother was taken prisoner by a dragon, and the children gradually come to know the story of the estrangement of Meg and their mother.
  
  The characters are all cleverly drawn and appealing, and the story is rich with humor and fun. As a child (and, truly, even as an adult) I loved the stories like this, with illustrations sprinkled throughout the book, and with a feeling of magic throughout.
• 
  Kailey (Luminous Libro)

  Thomas and Emily are the children of a knight and lady. They live in a castle, take archery lessons, and learn courtly manners and knightly conduct. They meet Meg, a scribe, who used to know their mother when she was a child. Meg tells them stories about the dragon who used to live in the castle and how their mother became involved in a terrifying adventure. But is Meg telling the truth? Or is she just weaving a tall tale?
  
  I love the story-inside-a-story structure of this book! As Meg gradually tells the children the story of the dragon, Thomas and Emily are pondering how to reconcile Meg with her old friend, their mother. There are adventures and exciting plot twists in both stories, and everything from the past affects the present. As we are introduced to characters in Meg's story of the past, we learn more about them in the present with Thomas and Emily. The whole story structure is brilliant!
  
  The writing is so witty and hilarious! Every page is full of snappy dialogue and little jokes. But there are also some heart-felt moments and some serious scenes.
  
  The little details in the setting make the world-building special and draw you into the story. It's sort of a mixture of modern and fairy tale elements. There are dragons and pixies and trolls and elves. The humans live in a castle with a moat and a drawbridge, but they also play tennis and go to college. It's such a charming magical setting!
  
  I loved the funny connection between Meg and the children. She's kind of grumpy, but they feed her snacks and she agrees to tell them a story. Meg is such an interesting and mysterious character. You never quite know what weird thing she will do next! I really enjoyed getting to know all the various characters. They are all sort of awkward and wild, and it's such a madcap group of knights and scribes and artists.
  
  The illustrations are so cute! I love the art style and the character designs. Every two or three pages there is an illustration that bring the story to life, and somehow makes the story even more funny! I especially liked the details in the border along some of the illustrations. I figured out that the artwork that shows something happening in Meg's story of the past has a border of leaves or fruit or some kind of flower, and illustrations showing the "present" don't have a border. What a cool detail! I loved that each chapter starts with an "illuminated" letter. It gives it that old-timey feeling!
  
  I enjoyed this book so much! It's exactly the type of comical fantasy that I wanted.
  
  Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
• 
  Elizabeth Coy

  This is a really sweet book about friendships and how they can evolve. It was a lot of fun to read, and I can’t wait to read it to my kids. Perfect for ages 7-10 I think. It has everything a kid would want -kidnapping, dragons, elves, love, a daring fight. I definitely recommend reading this book
• 
  Cheryl

  I don't know how to rate this because I can't decide if it's brilliant, or just refreshingly original, or, if it's slight, or just deceptively easy to enjoy. It's certainly like nothing I remember ever reading before, and I've probably read 10K books in my life, seriously.
  
  The easy way to talk about it is to say it's both an homage to, and a gentle spoof of, children's fantasy. But not really, because almost all the action happens in the story-within-a-story. And there is no quest. And it's mostly funny.
  
  The ending seemed a bit 'out-of-nowhere' until I thought harder about it, and I also had to think hard about all the 'loose threads' that I thought that I was seeing. So, that's a lot of work for the reader... more than expected for a book with lots of cartoony illustrations and no nuanced characterizations.
  
  Interesting details:
  The sister is revealed to be 9, making the brother 11-ish. The girl is learning archery and other lessons, but is otherwise girly, the boy is def. boyish. We never get to know the other scribes, though one or two seem to have a mystery behind them. We don't meet the cook who gives the children all the treats, or the tutor who gives them so much free time.
  
  Anyway, I don't know how to recommend it, but I do. Consider this: if you're looking for something refreshingly creative and fun, but wholesome and interesting too, and you like children's fantasy, try this!
  
• 
  Andréa

  Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.
• 
  Chazzi

  I received this from Library Thing Early Reads
  
  Thomas and Emily were practicing their archery, one day, and lost one of their good arrows in the brushes near one of the towers. (Thomas and Emily are the little nobles who live in the castle.) While looking for it, they discovered there were people in the basement of the tower. They turned out to be Meg, the leader and a bit of a grouchy lady, and her assistants. They are the castle scribes.
  
  It seems Meg used to be very good friends with the little nobles Mummy, when both were young girls. That was back when a dragon lived in the castle. The little nobles start spending time with the scribes and coerce Meg into telling them about how and why there was a dragon living in their castle. Meg tells the tale in chapters, which leaves the little nobles wondering if the story is true or not.
  
  Thomas hopes it is, as he can learn about dragons. He is going to be a knight when he grows up and fighting dragons is very important. Emily thinks it is thrilling and hopes it is true as she is learning about her Mummy as a young girl.
  
  The book is a fairy tale that isn’t saccharine sweet or gory and violent. Meg may be a bit grouchy, but she tells a good tale. There are touches of sarcasm and humour as she spins her story.
  
  The age level is 7 – 10 but I think it is an enjoyable read for any age. There are also illustration sketches that add to the story.
  
• 
  Erin Cataldi

  A children's fantasy novel that is told as a story within a story. When two Noble Children lose one of their best arrows they stumble upon a "dungeon" in a courtyard they weren't often there. They soon discover that it's not a dungeon but an odd assortment of artists who are responsible for all the castles invitations, paintings, and decorations. The leader of the rag tag group is Meg, and she wants nothing to do with the children as she is very busy. But the kids know that this crazy woman (is she a witch?) has some fantastic stories up her sleeve. So the boy and girl come back every day with treats from the castle kitchen and put themselves to work, all in order to hear the story about the dragon who used to live in the tower. It's too unbelievable to be true, but the kids are entranced by the story. They soon discover -that one of the main characters in Meg's story is their sensible mother. Their mother knew about a dragon and never told them?!? Cute and fun, a perfect family read that is sure to elicit lots of giggles. The illustrations are a nice touch.
• 
  Jan farnworth

  What I liked:
  A dragon used to live here is a children's tale told in a story. Two noble children happen to shoot an arrow into the castle's basement; for fear of getting into trouble for losing it, they knock on the door and ask for it back. What unfolds is a fantastical tale about their mother and an old friend, which involves details that the children are not so sure are accurate. The artwork that accompanies this novel is delightful and a perfect enhancement to a chapter book, perfect for early readers looking for a more extended read but not a massive amount of pages. This story is just over 200 pages long and is a quick, simple story.
  Final Verdict:
  The tale, of course, turns out to be accurate; a dragon did use to live there, mom did flake on her friend, and all is forgiven in the end. Just the way you expect a children's book to go, a beginning, a conflict, and excellent resolution. Meg is a captivating and accommodating storyteller, and children will enjoy exploring with the children as they try to determine just how much of Meg's story is true.
  
• 
  Linda

  For young middle-grade readers, it's a fun adventure with two young nobles, Thomas and Emily, who are discovering all sorts of things about their kingdom and their mother when they visit the workroom of the scribes. Meg, the main scribe, used to be friends with their mother, the lady of the castle but an event happened that changed that friendship. Thomas and Emily argue a lot but they continue to work together to solve what's becoming a bigger and bigger challenge to discover if what Meg tells is really true. Was there really a dragon in the castle? Knights, elves, and the ways of castle-living make a funny story
  Clever illustrations by the author, Annette LeBlanc Cate add to the adventure, too.
  
  Thanks to Candlewick Press for this copy!
• 
  Jenn

  I won a copy of this book.
  
  This would be a good chapter book for kids 7+. Read along or bedtime story would work well as chapters are short. Dialog is easy to get into, characters feel real, and the story is just entertaining. The artwork (not completed in my book as it's an ARC) included my book follows the story and gives the reader some idea of what things look like.
  
  Thomas and Emily, royal children, are practicing archery when they lose one of the really good arrows. When they go looking for it, they discover a door they've never seen before. Knocking, they meet a woman who knows all about the Queen - Thomas and Emily's mom! And oh the tails she weaves...
• 
  American Mensa

  Great Medieval Fantasy Adventure
  
  A touching story about the power of a true friendship. Thomas and Emily losing an arrow would be the start of a remarkable journey to help their new friend Meg and their mother Catherine become friends again. Was the dragon real? What about the elves or pixies, did they really exist?
  Thomas and Emily discover a whole new world of fantasy while learning about adventures of their own parents. They set out on their own adventure. Easy to read, full of entertaining characters and humor, this book could interest anyone. Although illustrations are fine, this book could use more of them.
  
  Review by Dylan W., 9, Metropolitan Washington Mensa
• 
  Erica

  I only skimmed this - it's a storyteller's story where an adult tells the children stories, and there's tension between what's fiction and what's real. Occasional b&w illustrations make it perfect for reading aloud in a family setting, when the children range in age from 4 to 9 years old.
  
  There's a bit of archery to open the story, and that tiny little bit is accurate! (I was surprised!) After that, there are fruit tarts, flower wreaths, and then dragons, elves, etc. It all wraps up nicely like a fairy tale.
  
  Nothing that I read while skimming it made me want to slow down to savor it - BUT I think it's great for family read-alouds. All human characters are assumed white.
• 
  nx74defiant

  This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.
  A very cute children's story. With charming line drawings.
  Thomas and Emily meet Meg, a cranky scribe who is working on party preparation for their parents anniversary party.
  Meg tells them a story of when a dragon lived in the castle. They are not sure if they can believe their mother had really been held captive by a dragon. But Meg captivates them with her story. The children help Meg's quirky crew and explore the castle.
• 
  Molly Cluff

  This was a cute story--very quiet and low-stakes. A brother and sister hear a zany story about how their parents met and seek to reconcile their mother with an estranged friend. The banter is very voicey and would be fun to read aloud. I was sort of waiting for more to happen so it felt a bit meandering to me, but it also had a certain charm to it.
• 
  Crystal Anderson

  I really liked this book in the beginning. It was cute and fun with neat illustrations. However, it began to lose steam and the ending (when it came) seemed rather rushed. Events that took a long time to get to were wrapped up rather quickly and a bit too neatly. I had hope this book would be more like a Jane Yolen or Patricia C Wrede type of story.
• 
  Julie

  A lovely story that I think would make a delightful read aloud for 7-10 year-olds (I can see reading the story aloud in the same chunks of story that Meg tells). I think kids will be drawn to the crocodiles, archery, the dragon, and trying to decide if Meg's story is real or not!
• 
  Anne

  didn't love this book. Maybe because I'm older and the story within a story (which had lots of interruptions) was not my cup of tea. But it is a good story about forgiveness and being a loyal friend. Let me know what your reader thinks!
  
  Found in L4M YT Volume 34.
• 
  Amanda

  I like the cheeky humor and think the author did a really good job creating realistic child characters. On the down side, it's kind of slow and the ending lacks punch.
  
  Received via LibraryThing.
• 
  angelofmine1974

  My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:
  
  
  https://youtu.be/k7R7ZeqM5Wg
  
  Enjoy!
• 
  Charlotte

  not quite to my personal taste, but I can imagine this being particularly well suited for a family read aloud.
• 
  Karis

  A fun read-aloud that my kids and I enjoyed quite a lot.
• 
  Lyn

  The storyline had quite a lot of potential but was let down by sub-quality writing and strange weaving in of faerie folk that wasn’t really resolved well.
• 
  Arthur

  I'm not the intended audience.
  Loose ends and an anticlimactic ending.