Children’s Book Review: The Dragon in the Library by Louie Stowell

* Sponsored

Kit can’t STAND reading. She’d MUCH rather be outside, playing games and getting muddy, than stuck inside with a book. But when she’s dragged along to the library one day by her two best friends, she makes an incredible discovery – and soon it’s up to Kit and her friends to save the library… and the world.

Book lovers and reluctant readers alike will love this fast-paced magical tale by Louie Stowell. Aimed at 7-9 year olds, but with a nice sprinkling of subtle references that adults will appreciate, The Dragon in the Library breaths fresh fire into young fantasy fiction.

This story has loads of plus points but one aspect that really stands out is that the main character, Kit, is just an average kid. She doesn’t share her friends’ enthusiam for books or school; she’s not great at sport – all she wants to do is to have fun. However once she visits the library, Kit’s life becomes a lot more complicated. At first, she struggles with her newfound knowledge, but as she starts to listen and learn, Kit discovers that she can overcome the trickiest of challenges. Aided by her friends Alita and Josh, there’s a strong emphasis on teamwork and the idea of learning from your mistakes. All great stuff for growing minds.

Another brilliant feature of The Dragon in the Library is the way it brings the magical qualities of books and libraries to life. Just as Kit starts to travel to new dimensions, so do we – simply by turning the page. Readers have powers that others can only dream of and Louie captures this sense of wonder perfectly. Every child can experience Kit’s adventure whether that be through words or Davide Ortu’s cracking illustrations.

And the dragon? Well you’ll have to wait and see. Let’s just say that it’s stranger and possibly closer to a library near you than you can imagine…

If you’d like a chance to win a signed copy of the book, hop over to our Instagram account from 6.30pm GMT 14 June (giveaway closes 21 June). You can also buy the book here.

If you enjoyed this review, you might want to see our other book reviews.