Bradley's Dragons by Patrick Matthews

My name is Bradley, and I'm an Egg. It's still weird to say that, but I really hope I'll change into a dragon soon. I'm being stalked by hunters, so they can steal the gallu draig that will transform me and give me power. Once I've changed, I'll be able to protect myself. I have this "condition" that makes me deathly afraid of strangers, but my parents think I'm overreacting about the old man who moved into our trailer park. Why would any wealthy person choose to live next to a swamp, in a trailer?

What worked:

Bradley has a “condition” that makes him deathly afraid of all strangers. He can’t look them in the eye, let alone speak to them. There’s no explanation offering a reason, and his parents accept it as something he needs to deal with. His parents reveal that he’s an Egg, and he’ll be able to become a dragon once he’s able to control the gallu draig power inside him. It’s quite a contrast to envision a terrifying dragon that’s afraid of strangers.

The author skillfully builds anticipation and suspense with Bradley’s character. The first pages of the book share a time when he’s attacked by a hunter, although he’s forgotten about the incident. However, these pages demonstrate the danger of hunters toward dragons, so readers immediately start preparing for the next attack. The author does not relieve the expectations for quite a while. Then, Bradley discovers he’s an Egg, and he’s vulnerable to the hunters until he transforms into a dragon. He desperately tries to initiate the transformation, since it’s the only way he can truly be protected. He’s given a book to help him understand the process, but it usually provides cryptic messages that he doesn’t understand. Bradley begins showing a variety of abilities that make predicting his type of dragon difficult. If the book is like many other middle-grade books, his character will become a rare, super-amazing dragon. Readers will get to interpret the same clues as Bradley and imagine what will eventually happen to Bradley, and when.

The conflict of hunters stalking dragon Eggs is straightforward, but the author includes many complications and subtle clues to keep things interesting. The hunters usually look like humans, but an unexpected enemy appears that makes things immensely more difficult. Bradley’s dad is a powerful swamp dragon, while his mom is a sky dragon with impressive mind-control and illusions. However, the extended dragon family has issues, and they may not have a defense against the hunters’ new strategy. A couple of characters are keeping secrets about their feelings or past, so readers are left wondering if they’ll lead to unexpected trouble. Most dragons view humans as inferior species, so their relationship is uncertain. Bradley thinks his mother’s mind control is wrong, and he has simmering anger that she erased one of his memories. Internal conflicts about his mother, hunters, and transforming abound.

What didn’t work as well:

Bradley provides a clue early in the story that unnecessarily gets repeated several times. He asks if humans ever work with hunters when searching for dragons. The response is that it’s unlikely, but not impossible. Once the question has been asked and answered, asking the same question again becomes redundant. The first question plants the idea in readers’ minds since the whole book is about hunters hoping to capture and kill dragon Eggs. Additional questions about humans helping hunters start to get annoying. The underlying secrets being held by some characters help to make up for any annoyance.

The final verdict:

The perilous birth of a dragon. Following the process of a human becoming a dragon, while being targeted by hunters, creates an exciting adventure. The highlight of the book is the anticipation of when Bradley will transform and what type of dragon he’ll become. The whole conflict with the hunters is dependent on Bradley’s ability to change. Overall, this book is highly recommended and will appeal to lovers of dragons.