Book Review: Thomas and the Dragon Queen by Shutta Crum

Thomas and the Dragon Queen
by Shutta Crum
Non-series

Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0-375-85703-6
ISBN-13: 978-0-375-85703-4
Publication Date: July, 2010
List Price: $15.99

Review: Thomas and the Dragon Queen is everything you would expect in a tale of the medieval times; there’s a chivalrous knight, a kidnapped princess, and a fire-breathing dragon. There are only a few problems. The knight is twelve and a midget compared to all the other boys, the princess is content in her prison, and the fearsome Dragon Queen has a treasure though it is not what you would expect it to be. Shutta Crum did a wonderful job writing Thomas and the Dragon Queen , and Lee Wildish’s amazing, black & white illustrations add to the story. The main characters are Thomas, Princess Eleanor, the Dragon Queen, and Jon. This book is a mix of adventure and humor.

The story starts off with Thomas and his siblings reenacting a story that their father had told them the previous night. Near the end, they all see a knight on a mighty black warhorse. The knight has mud all over his armor and appears to be exhausted. Thomas takes the knight home so his bruises could be treated. It turns out that the knight is looking for a page and he thinks that Thomas is the perfect boy for the job. Thomas then goes to the castle and does many menial tasks as a page such as cleaning armor and serving meat roast. Thomas eventually becomes a squire and makes the acquaintance of a stable boy named Jon. While they are talking, Princess Eleanor comes and meets them. She has come to feed her father’s steed, Heartwind. As Thomas continues his training he learns that Princess Eleanor had been kidnapped by the Dragon Queen! Thomas then seeks the king and pleads to be knighted, and his wish is granted. Thomas becomes the shortest knight of the realm! His old master gives him a gift, a beautiful sword with a bright steel blade and an ivory hilt. Thomas is granted a quest to save the Princess. Will Thomas ever be able to find the princess? Can Thomas make it home alive? Only you can find out by reading Thomas and the Dragon Queen.

Thomas and the Dragon Queen is a remarkable book. It was a little surprising that Thomas did not feel much remorse when he loses his sword to the lake monster. One of my favorite parts of the story is when Thomas meets Princess Eleanor: “It was the princess! Thomas raised his eyes a little more; he had to see her. She was wearing a green and blue gown with long sleeves. Her dark hair was caught up behind her. Oh! And he was standing so close to her! He gulped. Wouldn’t Ma and Da want to hear of this! Then he looked down at his ash-colored rough clothes. To make matters worse, bits of straw and horse dung hung off him. Maybe Ma and Da wouldn’t want to hear of this.” This was hilarious! Also, there is a typo in the phrase above as it’s printed in the book. ‘Ma and Da’ were capital the second time but, not the first. This book is recommended to children ages seven and up because younger readers may not comprehend the storyline and seven-year-olds would enjoy the pictures. I give this book five out of five stars.

Review written by Ohm (7th grade student).

We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of Thomas and the Dragon Queen for this review.

Have you read Thomas and the Dragon Queen? How would you rate it?