Today’s book was honestly a bit of a surprise for me. I found it when browsing the young adult section at a local library and it kind of jumped out at me because of the name. Raising Dragons is the first book in the Dragons In Our Midst series by Bryan Davis and it tells the story of young Billy Bannister. Now Billy has a bit of a problem with his breath and considering that he is a 14 year old teenage boy you might think he has bad breath but he has a problem with hot breath. I mean that literally as his breath is bad enough to scald skin and to set off fire alarms by accident, the latter of which gets him into a bit of trouble at school. However, he quickly discovers that is actually a bit of a minor problem when he realizes that his father has been keeping a rather important secret about their family heritage for Billy’s entire life. On top of that there is a group of men going around asking questions about their family, specifically about Billy and his father. Things escalate when their family is attacked and a fellow student at Billy’s school, Bonnie Silver, ends up getting involved due to her family secret being similar to Billy’s father’s secret. Billy ends up having to learn how to navigate what seems like an entirely new world, but really isn’t, and shifting relationships with his friends and family.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to think of this book at first. I grabbed it to try it because it seemed to have dragons, which it does sort of, but not dragons like I am really used to. The dragons are similar in terms of their overall description but their history is rather different. I say that because the book talks about people who used to be dragons and kids who might be half-dragon with only some draconic characteristics. Not really something that you typically come across in literature. However, the story was actually pretty good and does a good job of integrating this somewhat unique version of dragons into the overall plot line. There are very few books that include dragons in a modern setting but this book did exactly that and I think the reason that it did such a good job is because of this unique version of dragons that it included. Another thing that this book did really well is how it depicted Billy having to adapt and adjust to the changes in his life due to everything going on. When he learns his father’s secret it really throws him for a loop and makes him question almost everything about his life and his family and about his parent’s trust in him. It does a good job of showing how Billy is affected by these things and about the doubts and fears that he has but also his ability and willingness to work past that when necessary. The book does this through an underlying theme of faith, both in oneself and in those around them but also through faith in a higher power as the book is considered Christian fantasy. In doing so it created an interesting blend of these elements that ultimately created a rather fascinating and compelling story. One that I hope to continue reading with the rest of the series. I am giving this book four out of five stars.
Overall, the book was pretty good and one that I would recommend to others. This book is considered young adult Christian fantasy so this is something to keep in mind. I think it would probably appeal to younger readers, especially those who already enjoy the fantasy genre or books about dragons. However, it is a Christian fantasy which may not be for everyone. It did not put me off the book but it may for others so fair warning. This book is also one that I don’t think would greatly appeal to older readers, unless it just sounds like something they would like. I am not sure exactly why but it didn’t feel, at least to me, like it would hold a lot of appeal to adults but I may be wrong on that count. Either way it was a good book and one that I enjoyed reading. If you happen to be familiar with the book or the series or are considering trying it feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.