Other editions of book The Reluctant Dragon

The story takes place in the Berkshire Downs in Oxfordshire (where the author lived and where, according to legend, St George did fight a dragon). It is Grahame's most famous short story. It is arguably better known than Dream Days itself or the related The Golden Age. It can be seen as a prototype to most modern stories in which the dragon is a sympathetic character rather than a threat. In Grahame's story, a young boy discovers an erudite, poetry-loving dragon living in the Downs above his home. The two become friends, but soon afterwards the dragon is discovered by the townsfolk, who send for St George to rid them of it. The boy introduces St George to the dragon, and the two decide that it would be better for them not to fight. Eventually, they decide to stage a fake joust between the two combatants. As the two have planned, St George harmlessly spears the dragon through a shallow fold of skin suggested by the dragon, and the townsfolk rejoice (though not all of them, as some had placed bets on the dragon winning). St George then proclaims that the dragon is reformed in character, and he assures the townsfolk that the dragon is not dangerous. So the dragon is then accepted by the people.

Based on the classic story by Kenneth Grahame, this was the first theatrical adaptation sanctioned by Grahame's estate. The townsfolk of Sussex, England are shocked when they discover a dragon living amongst them. But this dragon is far from the menacing fire breathing creature they envision. The truth is Alexander the Dragon is a peaceful fellow who likes to eat tarts and write poetry. Malcolm, the dragon's new friend, tries to convince the townsfolk that they need not fear the dragon, but because of the townsfolk's prejudices against dragons they insist on eliminating him from their town. It is up to Malcolm to come up with a solution to save the poor Dragon. Emma Gelders Sterne's adaptation captures the spirit and excitement of the original story and creates a marvelous theatrical adventure.

The Reluctant Dragon is an 1898 children's story by Kenneth Grahame (originally published as a chapter in his book Dream Days), which served as the key element to the 1941 feature film with the same name from Walt Disney Productions. The story has also been set to music as a children's operetta by John Rutter, with words by David Grant. The story takes place in the Berkshire Downs in Oxfordshire (where the author lived and where, according to legend, St George did fight a dragon). It is Grahame's most famous short story. It is arguably much more well-known than Dream Days itself or the related The Golden Age. It can be seen as a prototype to most modern stories in which the dragon is a sympathetic character rather than a threat. In Grahame's story, a young boy discovers an erudite, mushroom-loving dragon living in the Downs above his home. The two become friends, but soon afterwards the dragon is discovered by the townsfolk, who send for St George to rid them of it.

Footprints in the snow have been unfailing provokers of sentiment ever since snow was first a white wonder in this drab-coloured world of ours. In a poetry-book presented to one of us by an aunt, there was a poem by one Wordsworth in which they stood out strongly with a picture all to themselves, too—but we didn't think very highly either of the poem or the sentiment. Footprints in the sand, now, were quite another matter, and we grasped Crusoe's attitude of mind much more easily than Wordsworth's. Excitement and mystery, curiosity and suspense—these were the only sentiments that tracks, whether in sand or in snow, were able to arouse in us.

Why buy our paperbacks? Expedited shipping High Quality Paper Made in USA Standard Font size of 10 for all books 30 Days Money Back Guarantee BEWARE of Low-quality sellers Don't buy cheap paperbacks just to save a few dollars. Most of them use low-quality papers & binding. Their pages fall off easily. Some of them even use very small font size of 6 or less to increase their profit margin. It makes their books completely unreadable. How is this book unique? Unabridged (100% Original content) Font adjustments & biography included Illustrated The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame When a dragon is discovered up on the Downs, the Boy is not in the least surprised. He's always known that there was a dragon cave, so it seems only right for a dragon to be living in it.The Boy decides to pay a visit to the cave, and he thinks he knows just what to expect. But this particular dragon is not a bit like the ones in fairy tales. In this beloved classic story, a young boy befriends a poetry-loving dragon living in the Downs above his home. When the town-folk send for St. George to slay the dragon, the boy needs to come up with a clever plan to save his friend and convince the townsfolk to accept him. Dragons are a scourge and must be abolished, at least, that's what all the villagers say. It doesn't seem to matter that this particular dragon wouldn't hurt a fly and is more than content to laze by his cave and make up poetry. He certainly doesn't want to fight, though it seems he will have no choice when St. George arrives on his warhorse with golden armour gleaming, carrying the longest, wickedest spear you ever did see. Still, the dragon does have one friend — the shepherd's son, a small boy with a great deal of sense and imagination. Will he find a way to solve the dragon's dilemma?