When Grizelda decides to seek revenge on King Mildred by creating the largest, fiercest dragon in the kingdom, an unlikely trio of argumentative heroes--an elderly squire, a young page boy, and a headstrong, tomboy princess--set out to destroy it. Simultaneous. Citește tot Restrânge
ISBN-13:9780671798321 ISBN-10: 0671798324 Pagini:128 Dimensiuni: 130 x 189
x 10
mm Greutate: 0.09 kg Ediția:Original Editura:Aladdin
Descriere
Bruce Coville--with more than 6 million copies of his books in print--offers a traditional fairy tale filled with very non-traditional characters. It's a funny, heartwarming adventure that will appeal to boys and girls alike--a perfect introduction to Coville's work.
Notă biografică
Bruce Coville has published more than one hundred books, which have sold more than sixteen million copies. Among his most popular titles are My Teacher Is an Alien, Into the Land of the Unicorns, and The Monster’s Ring. Bruce also founded Full Cast Audio, a company that creates recordings of the best in children’s and young adult literature. He lives in Syracuse, New York, with his wife, Katherine. Visit him at BruceCoville.com.
Extras
Chapter 1: Making a Dragon 1 Making a Dragon “Do you have the lizard snot?” asked Grizelda.
“Right here,” said Phrenella, holding up a tiny green bottle.
Midnight thunder rumbled in the distance as Grizelda rubbed her hands together with delight. “Good,” she cackled. “We’re ready to begin!”
The two witches were standing in front of Grizelda’s cottage—a thatch-roofed dwelling hidden deep in the Forest of Wonder. Golden leaves were falling all around them. Between the witches, suspended above a low-burning fire, was a huge black cauldron filled with a bubbling brew. A dozen or so goblins, the strange, green-skinned creatures who did Grizelda’s bidding, lurked at the edges of the clearing. “Let the conjuring commence!” cried Grizelda. Rolling up her sleeves, she began to wave her skinny arms over the cauldron.
“Goblins, bring your ingredients!” ordered Phrenella.
As the goblins lumbered forward with the things Grizelda had sent them to gather, she began to chant strange and incomprehensible words. One by one, the goblins tossed their treasures into the bubbling cauldron. The fire made their shadows flicker and dance around the edge of the clearing.
The wind began to pick up. The storm was getting closer.
Phrenella stood near the fire, muttering the names of the things the goblins tossed into the cauldron, as if checking them against a list. “Moondust and mildew, toad tongues, bat wings, fireflowers and wormwood…” These were just the beginning of the list. Soon there were other things, things too strange and fierce to mention.
The cauldron began to boil more fiercely. A smell of fear and sulfur rose from the strange brew.
“No eye of newt?” asked Phrenella at last.
“Eye?” cried Grizelda. “What eye? I’m using the whole thing!”
She pulled a tiny wriggling thing from her pocket. “Behold!” she cried, pointing to the squirming creature. “The dragon-to-be!”
With that, she hurled the newt into the cauldron. Raising her arms above her head, she began a new chant, her words low and menacing at first, then growing steadily louder until finally she was shrieking her incantation.
“Powers of the deep and dark
Grizelda calls! Send me your spark—
Use my hate to fuel this fire;
Let it work my heart’s desire.
Let King lose child, as I lost mine,
Let him drink revenge’s bitter wine.
Raise the dragon, raise him now,
To fill Grizelda’s hate-born vow!”
Suddenly the storm broke. Grizelda erupted in wild laughter as bolts of lightning streaked through the jet-black sky, sending the goblins scurrying for shelter. Thunder seemed to shake the trees where they stood. A shaft of lightning sizzled into the very center of the clearing—into the cauldron itself.
With a tremendous explosion, the cauldron flew into thousands of pieces. For a moment all was silent. Then a tiny creature—something like a lizard, yet somehow… different—scrambled from the wreckage. Rearing on its hind legs, it spit fire at one of the goblins, which ran shrieking into the forest as flames singed its pants.
The tiny dragon gave a piercing cry, then turned and raced in the other direction. Soon it had disappeared among the trees.
“He’s not very big,” said one of the goblins, sounding puzzled.
“Oh, he’ll grow,” cackled Grizelda. “He’ll grow. By spring he’ll be—remarkable!”
Grabbing her broom, she leapt astride it and soared into the darkness. Her shrieks of laughter seemed to hang in the air behind her as she vanished in the wild October sky.
