If I Had a Dragon / Si Yo Tuviera Un Dragon

by Tom Ellery, Amanda Ellery

PreSchool-Grade 2–Dismayed when his mom asks him to play with his baby brother, Morton wishes that the tot could turn into something fun, like a kite, or better yet, a hulkingly huge, lime-green dragon. In a series of amusing illustrations, the boy imagines the activities that he and his new companion would share, followed by the less-than-fun results on the next spread. A walk seems like a great idea, but the page turn shows the creature flying off into the sky with Morton dangling from its leash. A basketball game might be enjoyable, until he realizes the impossibility of scoring against a wall of towering green flesh. Whistling together is also a bust, as the youngster ends up with toasted hair. Chastened, Morton banishes his imaginary playmate and races home to join his brother in the sandbox. The brief text, interspersed with wordless spreads, makes this offering a great choice for newly independent readers as well as for sharing aloud. The exuberant watercolor-and-charcoal cartoons take maximum advantage of the dragon's girth, and the images sprawl across the pages. The wacky elasticity, breezy hilarity, and unexpected perspectives in the art add a sense of mad motion. This book's theme will resonate with children, who will appreciate the jokes and identify with the mischievous protagonist and his unusual friend.–Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha Public Library, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genres: Picture Books, Dragons, Childrens, Storytime, Family, Fantasy, Fiction

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Shiloah]

Super cute! It was even better because my Lamby (7) read it aloud to us tonight!

[Scott Parker]

Although enduring PTSD flashbacks while reading Si Yo Tuviera Un Dragón, because of the song "Puff, the Magic Dragon" that has haunted me since childhood ("...one gray night it happened, Jackie Paper came no more, and Puff, that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar"), I still enjoyed the uplifting message of the importance of being kind to siblings. Yet, I must reluctantly add, the ending was a bit predictable. I do not anticipate Si Yo Tuviera Un Dragón being made into a play or movie in the future, yet if it happens, Barney the Purple Dinosaur could easily handle the lead role of the dragon, expanding on his already impressive acting resume.

[Savannah Wilson]

If I Had a Dragon is a cute book about learning to appreciating your siblings. If a child is struggling with wanting to play or talk to or just spend time with their sibling this book is a good match! I think how it shows all the things the boy in the book has planned for himself and the dragon just to show that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. This is a humorous book that children will find very funny. The age group for If I Had a Dragon would be no more than around second grade.

[Ralf Urbach]

My son loves dragons so this was right in his wheelhouse! Good combo of wording and illustrations, to create his dragon friend. This was an easy read for him, and he after reading pretended to have his own dragon which we kept in the garage.

[Darren]

Morton doesn't want to play with his baby brother, who he thinks is too small to be any fun. He imagines if he had a dragon instead, and, sweetly, discovers maybe baby brothers aren't so bad after all.

[Deb]

I really like books about children who imagine they have a pet dragon because I used to imagine I had a pet dragon. The illustrations of the dragon in this one are fun. It's also a lesson book. This little guy realizes it's better to have a little brother than a big dragon. Reality strikes again. But it would still be fun to have a pet dragon. Flying on one would be worth the challenges for sure.

[Nadina]

This was really cute, and it actually made me think of a friends' child and I will likely be recommending it, even if it is not 100% relatable, there are definite elements.
It was also just really cute, the boy has to play with his brother, but believes his brother is too small to have fun with, so he wishes his brother were a dragon and imagines all the "fun" that he could have with the dragon.
Super sweet with a cute ending and funny illustrations. I do think kids would enjoy it.

[Nohemí González]

Disfruto mucho de los libros bilingües, muy útiles para enseñar otros idiomas a los más pequeños, la historia está muy linda

I enjoy very much this kind of bilingual books, very helpful to teach other languages to the children, lovely story

[Chelsea Kirkland]

I like that ALL of the text on every page is in both English and Spanish, and it could be fun w imaginative preschool kids. Seems to drag a little though... Could read only English once and then Spanish?

[Beverly]

A cute and comical story in which a young boy realizes all the cons of having a dragon. Cute cartooney illstrations.

[Olivia S]

Such a cute funny book. Morton wishes his little brother would turn into something fun, like a dragon! His imagination runs away with him, thinking about all the fun things they could do together, but Morton eventually realizes a dragon might be a bit of an inconvenient playmate, and maybe his brother isn't so bad after all. The illustrations are really cute and funny, with cute little touches for the older reader, and I think kids would find it really funny. Will definitely use for a storytime. 3+

[Mary Greer Thomas]

This book has huge illustrations and not many words. This would be good for early preschoolers. I did not particularly like the book, but I understood the message. The young boy did not want to play with his little brother and wished for something bigger that did not want to play with him. I thought it was kinda frightening for children, or maybe it was the tone of the reader. This would not be a book of choice for my classroom.

[Victoria Moon]

I think this book would make a good read aloud because it teaches students about appreciating their family. In the book, the little boy didn't want to play with his little brother so he wished he had a dragon but realized if he had a dragon, he wouldn't be able to really enjoy the things that he wanted to do. Through this he realized that playing with his brother wouldn't be so bad.

[Kelly Wickham]

Morton's imaginary playdate with a Dragon. Who wants to play with your little brother when you can play with a dragon? But in the end, little brothers are nice too! Read this cute book, written in English and Spanish, to find out what kind of day Morton has with this pet Dragon. Includes fun, rustic type drawings for pictures. Marcos enjoyed this book.

[Rose Rosetree]

Here's a variation on the Jealous Older Sibling genre of picture books.

When little brother isn't enough fun, why not imagine turning him into a dragon? Goofy pictures add to the fun.

Altogether Amanda and Tom Ellery have packed a lot of fun, very cute pictures, and very few words, into this one-of-a-kind picture book, FIVE STAR worthy!

[Courtney Evans]

Picture Book: I got the version of the book that has Spanish and English, I think this will help ESL students learn new vocabulary. I also like that the story will help students realize that sometimes what you wish for is not always what you want (like a dragon).

[Heather]

A recommended read aloud for ages 6-8 by Minnesota State University. Who doesn't dream of trading in their little brother for a dragon? But would it really make for a better playmate? A fun tale of sibling frustration and love. Highly recommend. Very short. Best for 1st grade and below.

[Amy]

Love love love this book! So cute and one of the first books I read to my daughter. I have the English and Spanish version and it helps teach Spanish in a quick fun way. I love the imagination of the main character and the dragon is so darn cute! Highly recommend

[Jessica]

A little boy doesn't want to play with his little brother. Instead he imagines what it would be like to have a dragon to play with instead. In the end he realizes a little brother is better. Sweet story.

[Kim]

Bilingual book, English and Spanish. A boy who is told to play with his baby brother wishes his brother was a dragon and imagines what he could do with a dragon. 1-3 sentences per page, fully translated in both languages.

[nikki]

kids in my storytime had a lot of fun with this one. they liked guessing what would happen each page, and i had lots of fun reading it!

[Kristen Dutkiewicz]

I would say this is certainly a book for a child who loves dragons or a child who is struggling to engage with a much younger sibling.

Overall it is a cute story about a boy who wonders what it would be like to have a dragon instead of a brother, but I just was not overly impressed.

[Sparrow]

I liked the lesson for appreciating your siblings, but I wish it hadn't been at the dragon's expense.

[BiblioBeruthiel]

This book has a sweet message about siblings and a lot of silly stuff but may be too subtle/weird for storytime. Theme would be siblings.

[Tommy Schlosser]

Siblings aren't always what they appear to be!

[Brindi Michele]

this is cuteeeeee :) works for siblings and pets themes

[Carissa]

A wonderful, bilingual book with great illustrations and simple translations! The story is cute, too, especially for children who have siblings. Definitely a recommended read!

[Heidi-Marie]

Covering Toddler ST for B., she had picked a dragon theme and this as one of her books. REALLY cute! I liked the pictures and the story. The kids and adults both seemed to like both as well.

[Kristen Thorp]

60/365

[Molly Cluff (Library!)]

A little boy wishes his little brother was a dragon, then reconsiders when he realizes that wouldn't be much fun.