Good Night, Good Knight (Penguin Young Readers, L2)
by Shelley Moore Thomas
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Book Summary Information
Author: Shelley Moore ThomasIllustrator: Jennifer Plecas
Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-10-14
ISBN: 0142302015
Number of pages: 48
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers
Book Reviews of Good Night, Good Knight (Penguin Young Readers, L2)
Book Review: Oh what a knight
Summary: 5 Stars
Ah, sweet metaphor. Do children get metaphors? Studies show.... actually I haven't a clue what studies show. I haven't a clue if kids, little kids who are just beginning to read on their own, understand metaphors. Some do, I suspect. Others, not so much. Now, the book "Good Night, Good Knight", is a pretty obvious metaphor. And little children reading it will probably understand what the dragons in it represent and what the knight himself represents. Even if they don't, it's a smashing good tale. Sweet without descending into saccharine. Cute without being cutesy. It has just the right amounts of adorableness and neediness within its pages. Parents will be able to read it again and again without gagging. Kids will be able to read it with pure unadulterated pleasure.
Once there were three little dragons who didn't live all that far away from a good knight. One night the knight hears a roar. He hops on his horse to investigate and meets a small dragon in a cave. The dragon is not particularly surprised to see the knight (words along the lines of "Oh good. You have come" are bandied about) and asks for a drink of water before it goes to bed. The knight is wary but acquiesces and the little dragon is tucked into bed. No sooner than the knight goes home does he hear another roar. This comes from a second dragon who wants a story plus the first dragon who wants another drink of water. By the time the knight is called to take care of a third little dragon the reader sees where all this is going. The story is an excellent tale of an increasingly weary knight as he attempts to cajole and tuck in three mildly demanding little dragons for beddy-bye. At the end, the dragons are asleep (finally!) and the knight finally gets to fall into his own bed for the night.
I think what saves this book is the fact that though the dragons are somewhat demanding, they are quite polite. A story about three spoiled tantrum-throwing dragons who refuse to go to bed would have been, how do you say, not so nice to read. These dragons speak in full sentences and request only those things that small children would request. Stories, kisses on their scaly cheeks, stories, and songs. An added pleasure comes in the form of Jennifer Plecas' illustrations. Rendered in somewhat cartoony watercolors, the little dragons all have nightgowns, pjs, and various toys and stuffed animals. The knight, for his part, often looks surprised but never outright displeased. Like every patient parent he gets a little weary with the continual requests (his facial expression when all three roar for him together is one that every parent will recognize and sympathize with) but rarely upset.
There is nothing frightening in this book. There is nothing mildly disturbing. There is just a sweet bedtime story about a knight and his sudden dragony charges. This is a good bedtime book, if only because it's one of the few whose plot isn't based on children refusing to go to bed. This time it's children perfectly willing to go to bed but with some stipulations beforehand. If you'd like a book that will amuse you and please your children all at once, "Good Night, Good Knight" does indeed fit the bill. Sweet without insulting anyone's intelligence.
Summary of Good Night, Good Knight (Penguin Young Readers, L2)
The Good Knight is on his watch when he hears a sound. Roar! Is it a dragon? A great big dragon? He searches the woods and finds a surprise. Three very little dragons are almost ready for bed. But who will read to them, tuck them in, and kiss them good night? Is this a job for the Good Knight? Young readers, like the young dragons, will quickly fall under the Good Knight's spell.
"Stories of valiant knights slaying fearsome dragons are going to fall sadly flat after one reading of this bewitching tale." (Kirkus Reviews, pointer review)
"Stories of valiant knights slaying fearsome dragons are going to fall sadly flat after one reading of this bewitching tale." (Kirkus Reviews, pointer review)
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