AHOOOO! - Dragonbreath: Curse of the Were-Wiener by Ursula Vernon

Well hello there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers!  October has come and gone but the reviews are here to stay....including a few spooktacular titles that didn't quite make it into last month's schedule.  I admit it; in order to squeeze every last funtastic second out of last month, I made a few posting decisions, including a few reviews on the weekend.  While they were fine and dandy, alas...there still wasn't quite enough time to share every title I wanted to (don't ya hate when that happens?) but since I know your reading tastes run the genre gambit as well, I think you'll still be pleased with the assortment.  So, let's get started, shall we? 

Today's featured title is actually the third book in a great children's series full of imagination, creativity, and....were-wieners.  Yep, you read that right....but it's not exactly what you're probably imagining right now so let me jump right into it so as not to have your imagination running away with itself.  The book of choice for today is....

Dragonbreath:

Curse of the Were-Wiener

by

Ursula Vernon

Starring Danny (the -part- dragon) and Wendell (the iguana) in a most outrageous tale about what's REALLY in that school cafeteria lunch....you always knew something was off but when it bites back, yeah, time to SERIOUSLY worry!  This is just the problem these two friends run into as their school lunch decides to leave its mark on them...TEETH marks that is.  Apparently the latest batch of hot dogs don't just plump when you cook them, they turn on you when they defrost.  Grab your ketchup...grab your mustard...and prepare for adventure and most of all, BEWARE THE WERE-WIENER!

This book was so much fun! The main characters personalities come out on each page with the playful bantering adding a touch of real world life to their actions.  The secondary characters are a hoot, or should I say "howl", whether speaking of their fellow classmates, the school bully (who is oh so slow on the uptake), and even the potato salad they let loose in the sewer on another adventure (yeah...there's more to that one, but you'll just have to remain in the dark....don't want to spoil the surprise).  The conversations between Wendell and Danny are hilarious, really!  The way they are written...well, just try not injecting a little attitude when reading their parts...betcha can't!  With a hint of smarts and a lot of snarks, the flow is natural and easy to follow despite the species difference between you and them (unless of course you are a dragon or iguana and then of course you're the same species...and congrats on the reading capabilities!). 

I have the first book...somewhere in my "books bought but not yet read" box (or mountain) but well...it still suffers from "I've-yet-to-read-it" syndrome, but you can definitely follow this adventure with no problem...though I REALLY want to know more about that talking potato salad.  The cover and title are what drew me to the series first since I had not previously heard of this particular author.  The color scheme is black and white and green with a red thrown in now and again which just adds to the quirky appeal of the book.  The story is told not only in passages but also illustrations and a few comic book friendly segues sure to make you smile (or laugh, guffaw, etc).  For a quick peek at the webisode/book trailer for the title, click on over to the publisher site.

Fun for readers of all ages, boys and girls, animal and mineral...with it's interesting choice in color scheme and it's quirky illustrations throughout, it combines the best of a novel with a touch of comic book allure adding up to one great adventure.  I can only imagine the fun times to be had in the first two installments of this series...no, wait, I can unearth book one and find a copy of book two somewhere out there (*rubs hands together while plotting future book buying adventure*).  Once you pick it up, you won't want to put it down, but watch your fingers, unless you too want to become lunch meat, or in this case, were-wiener minions...AHH!

ARC for review was won via a contest held by the great folks over at Books 4 Boys (Penguin Young Readers Group).  (THANKS!)  Though obviously, I am not a boy, the site has books for everyone....just as an added bonus, these titles happen to be "boy approved" so if you or someone you know is looking for reading suggestions for their boy readers, I'd definitely steer them over here.  They've got everything from information on the Dragonbreath series to Vladimir Tod, excerpts to downloads, and quite a few others awesomely bookish things so be sure to check them out online...or follow along on Twitter. 

Until next time....happy reading!