Dragon: Hound of Honor

by Julie Andrews Edwards, Emma Walton Hamilton

In the noble and dangerous times of medieval France, the young knight Aubrey de Montdidier, nephew of the Count of Montargis, has been strangely murdered. His friend the brave Sieur DeNarsac, captain of the count's men-at-arms, and Thierry, a young page, must now solve the tragic mystery. Yet it is a magnificent white wolfhound by the name of Dragon -- Montdidier's faithful companion -- who brings an unexpected, shocking conclusion to the puzzle of his master's untimely death. New York Times best-selling authors Julie Andrews Edwards and Emma Walton Hamilton weave a tapestry of intrigue, power, loyalty, and friendship in this novel based on the captivating French legend of Montargis.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Fiction, Dogs, Animals, Middle Grade, Childrens

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Dame Julie Elizabeth Andrews Edwards, DBE is an award-winning English actress, singer, author and cultural icon. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honours. Andrews rose to prominence after starring in Broadway musicals such as My Fair Lady and Camelot, as well as musical films like Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965).

Reviews

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I loved the author's other book "Mandy", this book left something to be desired and wanting in its telling. First of all out of the many books dedicated to doggy heroes I have never heard of Dragon before nor have I heard of this particular legend so it does bring up a question at least whether this is based on actual events or not.

Second of all for Dragon to be such a main witness and the title character he doesn't appear to have much of a role in the book but is rather a secondary character. As such much of the story ends up revolving around the other human characters while for the most part just bringing in Dragon occasionally when it seems to be the right thing to do but otherwise it is the same human characters who translate the telling of the actual story for the rest of us instead of allowing the dog to have a voice.

As for the mystery it may be more of a mystery to younger readers or to those who aren't quite readers of other genres. Otherwise if you are a mystery reader or even an avid reader there is truly no mystery to the events just an unfolding of the story.

Altogether there could have been a better plot line and deeper character build for the reader to make this a better book plus a better pacing of the events. And although there is wonderful details to the historical facts of the book as well as a French-to-English glossary and a glossary of little known English terms there isn't much else to congratulate the book on.

Although it could be a decent book for YAs around higher middle school and high school crowds there is still a bit of violence, graphic sites and of course a bit of a sexual implication at one point. Otherwise I can say I wouldn't truly recommend it to any other particular group of readers at this time.

[Elizabeth S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically a medieval murder mystery, which is rather awesome. Set in the late 1300's (Is that medieval? If not, sorry, but I'm still using "medieval" for the sake of alliteration.), a dog leads the inhabitants of a castle to the spot where his murdered owner was buried. And... and then things get ever more exciting.

It was hard to keep the characters straight until I found the page outlining the family tree. Immensely helpful. Also, at the end is a glossary of terms and French translations.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars
A good book. I enjoyed it but it was way to predictable; after reading the cover summary and the first half it was easy to tell who the culprit was. I did enjoy the twist with the duel at the end though. Younger readers would probably really enjoy this, but at the same time it is just slightly graphic, because it's the middle ages you know. ;)

[Kendra Andrus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now we have read all three novels written by THE Julie Andrews, and all three are unique and different from one another (and very well-written). This is a medieval mystery based on a legend about a dog who helps solve a murder. I would put it closer to the young adult (YA) category as the main characters are all adults and there is plenty of romance and murder and dueling, including drunkenness and bar fights. It is not overly graphic in any way, but a bit more intense/mature material. There's not much of a surprise in terms of the murder mystery -- the reader figures it out long before the characters, but it's still an enjoyable read as they discover the truth. It's also jam-packed full of castles and knights and medieval feasts and tournaments and has tons of vivid descriptions and information about that time in history. It's also set in France and has many French words and phrases sprinkled throughout. There's a glossary of both the French terms used as well as all of the medieval terms, and there were still more words that we had to look up outside of the book. If you want a good medieval novel with kings and castles and knights to get a feel for that time period and learn all the lingo, we recommend this one!

[Charissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique story with a fun setting. We found it especially cool that it's based on an old French legend!

[Zachary Hudson]

it was good

[Leslie Kitchin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm an elementary school librarian. I just finished reading this book to a 3rd grade class of children. I gave it 4 stars because the kids liked it very much. I thought it had a very slow start although it did become more exciting later in the book. It was a fun book to read out loud to them and introduce French words and other new vocabulary words. Also, medieval ways of life. I like to look things up on my laptop and show them pictures of things as I'm reading. I also showed them a book about castles.

They really enjoyed the murder mystery part of it and enjoyed guessing who might have committed the murder and "putting it all together." They also enjoyed discussing the personalities of some of the characters. I can't say this is one of the best books I've ever read, but it was enjoyable and I'm glad my kids had fun listening to it.

I'm also reading (to a 4th grade class) The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, also by Julie Edwards, and that is a much better book. Those kids are enjoying that book very much.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

***kids book-I picked up this book because of the cover. It was a dog book present like Boby of Greyfair cover that mom used to have. Then I realized it was written by Julie Andrew (Edwards)--from The Sound of Music and her daughter. It said in the cover that she actually has "The Julie Andrew Collection".

It is a story that takes place in medieval times based on The Legend of the Dog of Montargis. There is betrayal in a group of cousins that is witnessed by the hound, Dragon. Dragon was the only one to witness the murder of his owner and ultimately brings forth the killer's confession.

It was a well written book including maps, family tree, french-english glossary, and glossary of medieval terms. In this book the dog, Dragon, is actually a dog. He does not talk!

[David Howe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a amazing! I loved every word of it. When Dragon the wolf hound watches his master be murdered from a far he needs to find a way to alert his owners and friends. The murderer at the end of the story was a shock to me. Dragon's loyalty to his master and his friends is astonishing. I loved the family tree at the beginning of the book and the glossary of French terms at the back. One thing I would like to see in the book would have to be a, "How to pronounce the character names," page. That would be nice. Overall a great book an props to the amazing authors of this amazing book.

[Kat Walter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is aimed at young readers. I would personally say tweens to adult. I as an adult occasionally found moments to go a little slow, but the rest well and truly made up for it. The story deals with death, blood, and mourning, amongst other subject matters, but the highlight for me, asides from the way the climax of the story hit me like a punch to the guts, is the hero of the story, Dragon, an Irish Wolfhound. I highly recommend this book. It held me completely captivated till the end.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful mystery written by Julie Andrews Edwards and her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton. It is based on a legend from around the 14th century which makes it all the better. Included is a French-English glossary to assist with French words dispersed throughout the story as well as a glossary of Medieval terms. Very well written!

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

A medieval legend treated up by Julie Andrews and her daughter. The story is wonderful; the telling merely good. A little too much injustice for a very young child, as well as murder and evil plotting. But the heroes prevail and life in medieval France shines with interesting tidbits of lore and vocabulary.

[Faith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mystery with only one witness, a wolfhound named Dragon. He knows who has done the crime, but now, he must find a way to tell his human friends who did it.

Reasons I like this book-

Reason 1- Dragon is a smart white wolfhound.

Reason 2- This book has a mystery.

Reason 3- In the back of the book is a glossary for all the french words in the story.

[Lacey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of this I found a bit odd. A rather gray book not really dark, but not really great either. It is all about finding the killer of a young man about to be married. His dog helps figure this out, but doesn't have much of a part in the book.

[Shifra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read it in sixth grade, so my review might be kind of off, sorry.
It's well written and a page-turner. It's pretty obvious who killed the victim from the beginning, but the plot is about how they find out, how it's revealed. It's pretty amazing.

[Sparrow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too childish for my liking. It's barely 170 pages and it took until page 100 for anyone to actually investigate the murder. Dragon was barely in it except at the very end. And ultimately, the book just isn't all that well written, even though it is historically accurate. Just a big meh, IMO.

[West · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book because I love Irish wolfhound. My dad has had two of these kinds of dogs and we are getting another one in less than three weeks. I really like the setting in France near Paris when Dragon fights all the crooks!

[Ela Sarben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it though it had some small flaws. Being a medieval lover, this book was my childhood and I adore the realism and accuracy on the time period while having the fun child factor of an intelligent canine.

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have ever read. Julie is really able to captivate the readers attention with her thrilling details.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love all of Julie Andrew's books. And a lot of the movies she acts in! :) She is an awesome writer. This one is kind of sad, but I still loved it

[Matthew Nevels · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tedious, lots of big words, pretty cheesy but the kids liked it pretty well

[Kiley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book. c:

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy reading this little murder mystery. A quick read. Wished I read it to my boys.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really nice story and one that kids will enjoy. I'm sure we'll read it aloud to Ellie when she's older. There is a little violence in it but not excessive or too graphic.

[Val · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in medieval times, this book is great!

[Myra Rose Weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

My FAVORITE book. I loved this book, so much suspense and action! I recommend this book for anyone who likes adventure, fantasy, and history genres. :)

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful children's story about a dog, loyalty, friendship and what happens when one person becomes jealous of what others have earned.

[Tatiana.Kostevsck12.Com]

I going to read this now

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are so many characters called by so many names in the first 40 pages that I had no idea who was who, which meant I didn't care about any of them.

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

故事发生在中世纪的欧洲，英国与法国交战时期。

有位英勇的骑士被人谋杀了，而唯一目视到这一切的只有他的爱犬，大龙。
而无法以语言传达心里话的大龙要小心了，凶手正步步逼近，企图磨灭所有证据。

正真考验大龙忠诚的心的时候来临了。

胆战心惊的我，一页一页的往下读了。