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Baby Dragon’s Big Sneeze
by Sheryl Bass, Remesh Ram (Illustrator)
DETAILS:
Publisher: Be-Kind Publishing
Publication Date: October 18, 2022
Format: eBook
Length: 36 pg.
Read Date: December 2, 2022
Before We Get to the Story
I’m going to take things in a slightly different order than I usually do: I’m going to start with two important things you need to know from the outset.
The first is that Remesh Ram has given readers one of the cutest dragons ever. Really adorable.
The second thing that Ram demonstrates in almost one-half of the pages, is that a runny—nay, drippy—nose can be cute (also, this is going to really grab the attention of some kids).
The rest of the art is just as good. In a lot of books like this, all the adults/non-main characters tend to look identical—just different clothes and hair colors. Ram’s characters are clearly individuals. I really appreciated that.
Overall, bright colors, some very imaginative illustrations, and great character design. I’m really impressed with the art.
What’s Baby Dragon’s Big Sneeze About?
Right, now it’s time to get to the story part.
We start out with our cute baby dragon suffering from a cold, and as he’s flying around one day he sneezes (as one does when you have a cold). Being a dragon, stuff shooting out of your nose tends to be on fire—and this sneeze did a good job of setting part of a village on fire.
Our parent-less dragon doesn’t know what to do…he’s distraught and makes plans to leave and find a new cave away from the village (while leaving an apology note behind). A determined little girl comes upon him as he’s preparing to leave and confronts him. Then she decides to find him some help.
Discussion Points
The publisher notes that this book would serve to get conversations going about:
– Found Family
– Building Trust
– Love and Kindness
– Helping Others / Sharing
– Reserving Judgement
– Accountability / Making Amends
And, yeah, I can see it functioning that way well. I do think it can come across as too heavy-handed on some of these points. But I have to remind myself that this is a book intended for a very young audience—and subtlety isn’t called for there. Heavy-handed is a selling-point.
So, what did I think about Baby Dragon’s Big Sneeze?
I thought it was a cute little story. I think some of the rhymes would be fun to read aloud (I haven’t tried it yet, my dogs aren’t good audiences), and things like that are what draws a picture book to me as a potential reader-to-others. Will I have a good time reading this, or is it more of a thing you endure while hoping someone gets drowsy? (I’ve got plenty of experience with both)
I do think it’d work well for age-appropriate chats along the lines mentioned above—which is another nice bonus.
This is a great combination of attention-grabbing and attention-keeping art, a heartwarming story, some fun rhymes, and some potential life lessons. And—it’s about a dragon. Who doesn’t like to read about dragons? It’s been a while since I looked, but books for this audience about dragons aren’t super-easy to find. What better way to raise a Fantasy reader?
DISCLAIMER: I recieved a copy of this book from the author in exchange for this post and my honest opinion.
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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