How to Train Your Dragon: The Heroic Misadventures of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Book 1

We just read the third book in the series, titled "How to be a pirate". I will agree with others that this is a fun read aloud and I like that the hero is the underdog. But with that said there are some grim topics such as cannibalism. Also there is a bit of name calling using words like idiot. and the characters both good and bad have somewhat lewd and irreverent names. There are some words/concepts I edit out as I am reading...there was some reference to a characters large boobs. There is some drinking in the "How to be a pirate" in celebration. These books always have a great twist and sense of humor. And aside from some of the course aspects listed above, I believe it delivers wholesome entertainment. edit 9/21/21: We just had to put down book 6. It just seems to be getting more and more grim with the addition for each book. I will be changing my age rating.

First off, you have to think of this book series as a completely different set of tales than the movies. The primary similarity is the character Hiccup and how he is portrayed as a scrawny kid with a pet dragon named Toothless who both live in a barbaric Viking archipelago. And oh yes, there are also lots of dragons! Fishlegs, Snotlout & Stoick characters are also similar to the movies and that is pretty much where the similarities end. Enjoy this book series as its own story and don't try to compare it to the movies or you'll be sorely disappointed. A friend tried to steer us away from the book series saying that the movies are much better but my nine-year-old daughter fell in love with the books in spite of the differences. In one summer, she read all 12 books that we checked out from the library and now she wants to own the series because she loves it so much. She enjoys re-reading them and she also enjoys listening to the audiobook versions, which are highly entertaining with a talented voice actor! My daughter suggests that if the readers are faint-hearted to stop reading at book 8. Book 9 introduces the dragon rebellion and it gets a lot scarier and bloodier. Definitely read the books in order, don't skip around.

This series is awesome for kids who are in to adventure. Hiccup is always finding a new way to escape in times of peril. Him, Fishlegs, their riding dragons, and Camicazi are the perfect team. I recommend it to boys and girls alike.

even as a parent i love reading these books. the violence in them isn't realistic therefore there is no reason to be scared by reading this book. great meessages and role models.

My son just turned six and is pretty sensitive, so I try to be careful with what he reads, especially since he is reading himself now. I think this book is a fun choice. The protagonist is heroic throughout the story in ways large and small (being a good friend, etc.). There is the mention of violence in the past (the dragon who ate the settlement), but you don't live it or emotionally experience it at all, other than to understand how large this dragon is, and the fact that this dragon has eaten people before. Unlike in Harry Potter, in which actions can have the consequences that someone you know dies, I feel like the author in this book deals with violence with a light touch. (Making it okay for a younger crowd.) It is a real page-turner, and the author tells you from the start that it will all come out fine.

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.