Caramel reviews Train Your Angry Dragon by Steve Herman

Caramel reviewed Train Your Dragon to Accept NO by Steve Herman a couple weeks ago. He really liked the little dragon Diggory Doo in the book so he wanted to read and review a second book from this series (My Dragon Books). Sprinkles is taking notes and asking some followup questions as usual.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, what do you want to tell us about this book?

Caramel: You always say that!

S: Ok, I won’t. I take it back. so you can start!

C: Ok. So I want to tell you about the book. You know how it’s about a dragon which has a temper. He keeps having temper tantrums.

S: The dragon is Diggory Doo from the other book, Train Your Dragon to Accept NO, that you reviewed earlier, right?

C: Yes. Drew is teaching us how to train a dragon. Here is how he starts:

First, you start with common tricks
like roll over, sit and stay …
Then you must potty train your dragon
and teach him how to play. 

S: Then what else do we learn?

C: We learn that dragons make a good pet, but they have a bad temper. And their temper tantrums can ruin your day!

S: Hmm, so then how are we supposed to train our dragon to manage their temper? Reading through the pages we see Drew teaching Diggory Doo to calm himself down in different circumstances.

C: Yes. So for example when Diggory Doo doesn’t want to share Drew tells him to think about the other kids and how they feel:

“Instead of getting mad,
here’s what you should do…
Just treat the other children
how you want them to treat you.”

S: Yes, then there is the time when Diggory Doo gets upset because it’s raining and he can’t get out.

C: Oh yes, that’s when Drew says:

So I told him that when angry
thoughts begin to fill his head,
He can make them go away by thinking
happy thoughts instead.

S: Yes, that does seem like a good idea, doesn’t it Caramel?

C: Yes, I think so too.

S: Do you think you could use some of these tricks when you are feeling upset or angry?

C: Yes, maybe I can.

S: Which ones in particular sound most realistic to you? Let us pick one that you will try to use next time.

C: Happy thoughts. I like that one. I will try to think happy thoughts the next time I feel angry.

S: That sounds like a good plan Caramel! Apparently there are several other books with Diggory Doo and his human friend Drew, right? Looking at the last few pages of the book, you can see at least twenty more books from this My Dragon Books series!

C: Yes, I want to read all of them!

S: Wait! Why? What do you like most about this book?

C: The characters. When Diggory Doo cries or gets mad, he’s pretty funny.

S: How about the ideas? The idea to handle powerful and unpleasant feelings might be helpful too, don’t you think?

C: Yes! Happy thoughts! I love that! Ommmmmmm!