Handbook for Dragon Slayers by Merrie Haskell is a delightful middle grade fantasy with some refreshing elements.  Although a fantasy, the setting is in Europe, in the vicinity of the Rhine, which is a nice change from the typical England setting.  The heroine, Tilda, is a princess born with a crippled foot that constantly causes her pain and this gives her even more depth and texture beyond her resilience and loyalty.  The storyline took a few unexpected turns along the way and incorporated a few surprises.  This all added up to be a fun, adventurous, and at times, nuanced read.  This isn’t a typical “princess” book and with the title and plenty of dragons it may also appeal to any flexible boy readers, in spite of the female protagonist.  Handbook for Dragonslayers is a great book for middle grade readers who love magic and the middle ages.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  None

Violence/Gore:  Report of death in Crusades; report of a broken limb; character is slapped; stories are told about how dragons are slain; shoulder injured by an animal; brief skirmish with a dragon; sounds of battle are heard and character comes upon injured characters, mention of blood with one of the injuries; destruction of property by animals; general reports of the death a man’s wives; threat to kill/sacrifice a character for a magical ritual; animal kicks characters; a dragon is cut and there is a brief conflict with magic, swords with mention of blood.

Sex/Nudity:  Character kisses a fantasy creature to break a spell; a character is naked after a magical transformation (non-sexual).

Mature Subject Matter:

Physical handicap/deformity.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Mead, etc. sometimes consumed with meals.