The Secret Dragon
Ed Clarke
Subjects
- Fantasy Worlds - awesome adventures of magic and mystery
- Action Adventures - chills, thrills and plenty of spills
- Friends & Family - tears and laughter, and happy ever after
- Animal Tales - bundles of fur, fluff and fun
Average rating
The perfect tale of friendship and adventure for young explorers aged 8+, shortlisted for the 2020 Tir na n-Og Awards.
‘So if you’re not an animal that’s alive today, and you’re not an animal that’s extinct either, what on earth are you?’
Mari Jones is desperate to be a real scientist, even though she’s only eleven. So when she discovers a tiny dragon while fossil hunting on the beach, she’s sure she can find a good scientific explanation – as long as she can keep it hidden long enough to study it.
Unfortunately for Mari, this is one secret that doesn’t want to be kept. And as she starts to form a deeper bond with the mischievous dragon, she might have to admit that, when it comes to friendship, science might not have all the answers…
‘A heart-warming story’ – Guardian
‘Utterly enchanting’ – Cat Doyle, author of The Storm Keeper’s Island
‘Seamless storytelling interwoven with fascinating science . . . perfect for reading aloud!’ – Piers Torday, author of The Lost Magician
Reviews
An interesting tale of a girl who is desperate to be recognised as a scientist even though she is only 11 and hasn't even started high school yet. She goes fossil hunting near the cliffs every so often, and one day she makes a surprising discovery: a dragon. Well she isn't so sure that he is a dragon at first but, slowly he starts to grow and cause trouble and eventually breathe fire, which proves, to Mari that her theory must be correct: She has truely found a dragon. She wants to keep it confidential at first, but her stepbrother finds out and promises to help keep it a secret. But unfortunately for Mari, this is a secret that doesn't want to be kept, and Every so often, Gweeb finds a way to bring trouble for Mari as she carefully observes him, day by day. She is, however absolutely sure of the fact that there must be a scientific explanatin. And thats were her extra troubles start, as she and her stepbrother, who is also now her new best friend, almost get drowned along with A whole new species found to human kind: dragons. But she soon realises that when it comes to friendship, science may not have all the answers... A great book worth reading of adventure and truth. Find out: can Mari keep her new pet a secret before the world? Or will it soon be revealed and get Mari into heaps of trouble? Or is the Dragon going to behave well, though it is considerably mischieveous? What do you think?
Queen Marge Hammersmith 29.08.2024
Star Reviewer
I like this book because it shares facts about dragons.
Queen Bunny Pumpernickel 04.08.2022
It was good because it was about a dragon and the dragon liked milk. It was exciting. I would recommend it.
Anonymous 23.09.2021
The Secret Dragon is a fantastic junior novel about friendship, empathy and finding your place in the world. Mari thinks she knows who she is. She's a bit of a loner, she doesn't get along with her mum, she deeply misses her father and she cares more for animals of the past than flying, breathing creatures in the now. I loved this book. Its a fiction about a young girl who wants to be a scientist, who spends her days hunting the coastline for fossils. On one hunt a rock she cracks open has a surprising find inside, and Mari is thrown into a moral dilemma between her science ambitions and her conscience. A heart warming tale full of adventure, magic and spirit. Mari is beautifully written, stubborn and flawed, she doesn't always make the right choices.
Officer Nectarine Frozen-Peas 05.09.2021
I loved this book so much
Captain Flossy Tyrannosaurus 28.08.2021
It was a lovely book and I really enjoyed it. My favourite character was Gweeb 4 stars
Countess Angel Slingshot 06.08.2021
Adventure - friendship sort of book 6+
Anonymous 30.07.2021
Amazing! This book
Anonymous 22.12.2020
I like that Mari was still looking for gweeb even though it was a storm . I also like that Mari and dlyan were getting to know each other more.
Anonymous 01.12.2020
This story is for people who like dragons and adventure. It has lots of twist and turns that surprised me. My favourite character was Gweeb and I was so pleased that she returned to Mari. (Spoiler!)
Agent Mistral Quest 27.09.2020
I loved how this book is so enchanting and beautiful, this is one of my favourite books and always will be . I would recommend this book for 6 years +.
Countess Flopsy Waterfall 29.08.2020
Amazing. I loved it, it was perfect.
Nurse Aspidistra Mittens 22.08.2020
I liked it because it was about discoveries and dragons. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in science, discoveries and mythical creatures.
Anonymous 19.08.2020
this book is about 11 year old Mari, who lives alone with her divorced mother on a farm. She is a willing archaeologist and likes exploring the cliffs near her farm for fossils like ammonites. When she gets really annoyed with farmwork and goes to the beach. She meets Danny, a to-be student at her school, who knocks over a huge cascade of rocks. Luckily, no-one is hurt and they form a good friendship. On the way back home through the wreckage, she spots a golden red rock and puts it on her shelf. In the morning, she finds out that it was an egg with a dragon in it. She hides the dragon as she desperately wants to become a famous scientist and document her discovery, which she named after her father. However, she has to keep it safe and with Danny's help, just about succeeds. However, on day at the beach, he disappears into a cave, just before she showed him to Mr Grithiffs, the greatest scientist around. They all follow him into the cave and find more eggs. Grithiffs is so mean that he cracks them all open and tries to get rid of Mari, so he can document them as his own discovery. Mari lets them free, after realizing that Jonathon was not just a scientific specimen, but a friend.
Anonymous 02.08.2020
Very good descriptions, illustrations and powerful vocabulary to keep me engaged. I love this book.
Professor Cello Bookmark 16.07.2020
it is my favourite book because it is magical and scary and fun and transports you to another world.
Anonymous 14.07.2020
An egg is found on a beach and it hatches into a dragon!
Countess Candyfloss Mittens 10.07.2020
The secret dragon
Fairy Boadicea Pipistrel 02.07.2020
I would give this book 4 stars. It is about an 11-year-old girl named Mari, who wants to be a scientist when she is older and then somehow has found a dragon sort of creature hatch out of the rock. I am not going to tell you any more, because you have to read the book to find out. Overall, I think it is a great book and I would recommend you to check it out.
Anonymous 07.06.2020
I like this book because of how Mari found gweeb in the annomite and their adventures are so exciting!
Senor Mars Lanzarote 20.08.2019
