Demi's Dragons and Fantastic Creatures
PreSchool-Grade 2-Demi's familiar, imaginative animals, seen waltzing their way through Demi's Find the Animal ABC (Grossett, 1985) and A Chinese Zoo (Harcourt, 1987), are back again. This time their boldness is dazzling. Intricately cut, mixed-media collages, often placed on gold or black backgrounds, have a stunning impact. Not scary in any way, these are happy creatures that are symbols of "all that is good in traditional Chinese culture." Young readers will enjoy these fabulous beasts as they slither, leap, gallop, and wend their way across two-, three-, and even four-page spreads that open out to hold their oversized forms. Each one is accompanied by a "pearl of wisdom," a simple, entertaining verse placed in a circle. The afterword adds another dimension, providing clearly written background information about Chinese dragons in general and each one of Demi's representations in particular. Young children are always asking for a good dragon book; here's one they will love.Dot Minzer, North Barrington School, Barrington, ILCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.