Dragon Slippers

Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George stars Creel who finds herself with a pair of very special slippers after meeting a dragon.  When Creel's Aunt comes up with a scheme to marry off Creel by giving her to a dragon so she will have to be rescued Creel instead makes a bargain with the dragon.  She agrees to leave if the Dragon will give her part of his treasure so she can move to the city and find work as a seamstress.  The dragons treasure turns out to be a huge pile of shoes and the strange shoes that she picks are far more than she could ever imagine.

I loved this book.  It's one of those great middle grade novels that creates a fantastical world for the reader to get lost in.  Creel is a smart and spunky heroine who has no problem jumping into the fight and using her smarts and talents to save those important to her.  The mythology is solid and original and the dragons are fantastical creatures and great friends.  I read the book quickly and was sad when it was finished (but glad that there are more.)

Appropriateness:  This is a great middle grade novel that young readers will enjoy.  Most of the characters are female and fashion is a large part of the plot which might make this book unappealing to boys.  I would recommend this book to readers 9-14 and it is interesting enough to be a read aloud for younger readers.