The Dragon and the Turtle Go on Safari

by Paul, Donita K.; Denmark, Evangeline; Nguyen, Vincent

• ISBN13: 9780307446459
• ISBN10: 030744645X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-01-11
• Publisher: WaterBrook

Summary

"Padraig, my friend, it is time for us to be courageous." Padraig the dragon and his best friend, Roger the turtle are determined to spend the whole night outside. As brave explorers at the base of Mount Sillymanborrow, the boys use their imaginations to have fun while munching on crunchy baked bugs and toasting srs"mores over their campfire. But when the sky gets dark and the sounds of strange animals fill the forest outside their tent, their safari gets scary. This adventure is just what the boys need to discover that the dark might be frightening, but their friendship is stronger than fear.

Author Biography

A former schoolteacher, Donita K. Paul is the best-selling author of the Dragon Keeper series, The Vanishing Sculptor, and Dragons of the Valley. Evangeline Denmark likes to turn bedtime stories into picture books. She lives in Colorado with her engineer husband, their two noisy boys, her author mom, and Willie, a cattle dog who tries to herd the entire family into one room.
Vincent Nguyen has illustrated numerous children's books and is also a part of the art departments for 20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios.

Excerpts

Excerpt

Roger the turtle blew on his toasted marshmallow. “It’s going to be fun spending the whole night at the base of Mount Sillymanborrow.”

“I didn’t know it got so dark on safari,” said Padraig the dragon.

“That’s why we have this fire,” said Roger.

“It’s a roarin’ good one too.” Padraig settled into his seat. “Toss me another marshmallow.”

“Proper adventurers always say please,” Roger teased.

“Yes, indeed. Please.” Padraig speared a puffy marshmallow with a stick.

Roger searched the ground. “Padraig, my good fellow, is the box of baked bugs on your side?”

As the dragon handed over the crunchy treat, a screeching noise made him jump, hover in the air, then return to the ground with a whump. “My stars! What was that?”

“Not to worry, old chap. That was definitely the call of a howler monkey,” Roger explained.

“Oh, righto,” said Padraig. “Very loud fellows, aren’t they?”

“Indeed.” Roger nodded. “Now about those baked bugs.”

“Oh, stinky aphids! I dropped them all over.”

“I’ll help you clean up.”

The turtle gulped a crispy bug, then paused. “Wait! Did you hear that rustling?”

Padraig squinted into the night. “What makes leaves rattle in the tippy top of a tree?”

The boys looked at each other. “Giraffe!”