Thursday, March 5, 2009

Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George

George, Jessica Day. Dragon Slippers. New York: Bloomsbury, 2007.

Creel is expendable. She can't work on the farm like her brother Hagan. She's not beautiful and thus has no expectations for a wealthy marriage. She doesn't even have a dowry. These reasons are why her feather-brained aunt decides to sacrifice her to a the village dragon. She thinks Creel will marry her rescuer and said rescuer will look after Creel's extended family. The plan has a hitch. The dragon doesn't want her. Neither does he want to fight over her. Creel has her own plans. She means to go to the King's City and get a job in a dressmaker's shop. She bargains with the dragon. She'll leave him alone if he lets her have 1 thing from his hoard. He agrees. Much to Creel's surprise, the dragon doesn't collect gold, but shoes. He is reluctant to give her the shoes she chooses, but he eventually honors his agreement. Creel sets off in her dragon slippers for the King's City. Her slippers are both a help and a hindrance.

What I thought: What a wonderful story! It reminded me a lot of Patricia C. Wrede's Enchanted Forest Chronicles. I look forward to anything else the author writes.

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