An Awfully Beastly Business: Werewolf versus Dragon
Authors: David Sinden, Matthew Morgan, Guy Macdonald
Suggested Grades 3 - 6
Reviewed by: Cheryl Ashton, Amherst Public Library, Amherst, Ohio
The RSPCB, or the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Beasts, is the setting for this series where Ulf, a budding werewolf, is the assistant to Dr. Fielding, a cryptozoologist , who takes in and protects all sorts of beasts in a sort of “Jurassic Park” type setting. Gargoyles, jeepers creepers, electrodactyls, and a jellystoats all share this scientific protected haven until they are able to be released back into the wild.
Ulf appears to be a normal boy as he travels around the compound on his all-terrain vehicle at the bidding of the good Dr. Fielding. But one curt line, “Ulf was beast blood”, lets you know he has a darker calling as the pressure builds leading up to his rib-cracking “transformation” as predicted by the lunar calendar. He sleeps on a bed of straw and keeps friends with a tiny fairy named Tiana and a giant named Orson who help him as he tries to be a hero and do the right thing in a fantasy world where evil, and the odd, coexist.
While the format is styled similar to say the Spiderwick Chronicles or even a Snicket book the underlying theme here is presented in a way that crosses the line from fiendish fun over to the macabre. When a baby dragon is found dead Dr. Fielding performs an autopsy using a chainsaw. With blood spattering her lab coat and descriptions like “It opened like a zipper, and its guts spilled out..”, I’m wondering if the audience being targeted by the cartoon like characters and the larger print and line drawings is somehow being forgotten.
Poachers are setting up a “Ring of Horrors”, beasts fighting to the death amidst a crowd eager to place their bets is not unlike a gladiator scene. The mother dragon is lured into the fight and Ulf must work to save his friend Orson while protecting the mother dragon at the same time.
A spooky library scene offers answers in a book that might shine a light on the nature of some of the beasts involved and gives Ulf the inside information he needs to help solve the mystery behind some of the strange behaviors.
An ornate cover and lots of line illustrations will draw in even reluctant readers but better choices abound for this age group and I’m wondering if this series by three British authors plays better across the ocean. An additional purchase for most libraries, at best.
Authors: David Sinden, Matthew Morgan, Guy Macdonald
Suggested Grades 3 - 6
Reviewed by: Cheryl Ashton, Amherst Public Library, Amherst, Ohio
The RSPCB, or the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Beasts, is the setting for this series where Ulf, a budding werewolf, is the assistant to Dr. Fielding, a cryptozoologist , who takes in and protects all sorts of beasts in a sort of “Jurassic Park” type setting. Gargoyles, jeepers creepers, electrodactyls, and a jellystoats all share this scientific protected haven until they are able to be released back into the wild.
Ulf appears to be a normal boy as he travels around the compound on his all-terrain vehicle at the bidding of the good Dr. Fielding. But one curt line, “Ulf was beast blood”, lets you know he has a darker calling as the pressure builds leading up to his rib-cracking “transformation” as predicted by the lunar calendar. He sleeps on a bed of straw and keeps friends with a tiny fairy named Tiana and a giant named Orson who help him as he tries to be a hero and do the right thing in a fantasy world where evil, and the odd, coexist.
While the format is styled similar to say the Spiderwick Chronicles or even a Snicket book the underlying theme here is presented in a way that crosses the line from fiendish fun over to the macabre. When a baby dragon is found dead Dr. Fielding performs an autopsy using a chainsaw. With blood spattering her lab coat and descriptions like “It opened like a zipper, and its guts spilled out..”, I’m wondering if the audience being targeted by the cartoon like characters and the larger print and line drawings is somehow being forgotten.
Poachers are setting up a “Ring of Horrors”, beasts fighting to the death amidst a crowd eager to place their bets is not unlike a gladiator scene. The mother dragon is lured into the fight and Ulf must work to save his friend Orson while protecting the mother dragon at the same time.
A spooky library scene offers answers in a book that might shine a light on the nature of some of the beasts involved and gives Ulf the inside information he needs to help solve the mystery behind some of the strange behaviors.
An ornate cover and lots of line illustrations will draw in even reluctant readers but better choices abound for this age group and I’m wondering if this series by three British authors plays better across the ocean. An additional purchase for most libraries, at best.
