I just finished reading this to my 8,6, and 4 year olds. The 4 year old didn't really understand most of it, but the 8 and 6 year olds liked it a lot (the 8 year old read ahead on his own). It's a good bedtime book because the chapters are short. There's a lot of opportunity for the reader to YELL, and there can be some scary parts, so it appeals to the more rambunctious kids. My kids caught on surprisingly well to the idea that there are many ways to "be a hero." I thought the book did well indicating that there were many ways to be not-so-heroic also. It wasn't a brains-against-jocks as much as I'd thought.

the good stuff: Hiccup is a great role model while Toothless doesn't listen and is always complaining. Fishlegs is a good role model too and helps Hiccup out in a tough situation. On the downside, Snotlout and Dughsbrain are always bullying Hiccup and Fishlegs. the bad news:you see a bare-bottom Viking in a cartoonish picture, and there's plenty of potty humor. dragons fight each other and Hiccup and the Green Death have a discussion about cannabolisim. other than that, the violence is fairly mild.

I loved this book and it's a page turner. Once you start it you cannot stop. I have read all the books in the series except the last one. Here is the order: -how to train your dragon -how to be a pirate -How to Speak Dragonese -How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse -How to Twist a Dragon's Tale -A Hero's Guide to Deadly Dragons -How to Ride a Dragon's Storm -How to Break a Dragon's Heart Also there is a book that Crowell supposedly translated toothless's point of view and it's called How to train your Viking!

I tried reading this book out-loud to my kids (ages 9 & 7) since the movie was coming out, and I found that we never finished the book. My kids just weren't that into it and they love when I read to them. We went ahead and saw the movie even though we never finished the book, and I have to say that the movie is SO much better than this book. For me, that is usually not the case.

The "How To Train Your Dragon" series is great! Some of the plots in this series include: training a dragon (as said in the first book's title), saving The Hairy Hooligans, escaping Romans, and stealing a potato (it makes much more sense in context). Hiccup, Fishlegs, and Camicazi make a great team. I think it's better than the movie.