Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville

My name is Jeremy, and I just experienced the most memorable day of my life. My art teacher embarrassed me in the middle of class, a girl wanted to kiss me, and I was chased by bullies. I ended up lost in our small town and found myself in front of a magic shop. The shopkeeper said a big, shiny marble chose me (huh?), and I bought it for a quarter. Turns out the "marble" was a dragon egg! Now, I have a hungry dragonlet who's still learning to live in our world. My gerbils and guinea pigs are freaking out! Luckily, I'm the only one who can see her, but I don't really know what I'm doing. I don't know how big she'll get or what she'll do when she starts hunting for herself. The patients in my dad's veterinary business may be in big trouble. 

This book is the first in the Magic Shop series, although it looks like each book will be independent from the others. I first heard of the shopkeeper, Mr. Elives, many years ago in The Monster's Ring. In Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, the plot is pretty much what you'd expect. A young boy finds himself in possession of a dragon egg, and has no idea how to care for it. No one else can know about it, but an annoying classmate happens to be the only other person who can see it. Jeremy is the sole main character and acts on his own. Another boy and girl are with him at times, but the boy doesn't know about the dragon and Jeremy doesn't want to be around the girl. This results in a book that's uncomplicated and fun, that can be read quickly. It will appeal more to middle and upper elementary students, as it doesn't have the maturity, seriousness, and/or drama found in middle school books. Overall, the book offers everything you might expect in a story about a boy raising a young dragon. If you're looking for an easy-read, this book's for you.