Birthday + Reluctant Dragon

[osprey_archer]

A lovely birthday this year! I had a chocolate croissant for breakfast (discovered with some dismay that if you put a croissant in a tupperware, it loses its crispness; oh well, will remember this for next time) and a ham and cheese croissant for lunch and two macarons for snack (one pistachio and the other Earl Gray), and dinner at Petite Chou, where I attempted but did not succeed in winning over my compatriots to “appetizer smorgasbord for dinner.” Oh well. Someday I WILL get to try the gougere and the mushroom duxelle and the beef tartare.

I’ve gotten into the habit of saving a short book that I expect I will like to read on my birthday, and this year’s was Kenneth Grahame’s The Reluctant Dragon, an enchanting children’s fantasy illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard of Winne the Pooh fame. It’s really a short story published in book form. A boy befriends a lazy sonnet-writing dragon, only for St. George to ride into town, so the boy has to mediate so St. George won’t slay his dragon friend…

”Haven’t got an enemy in the world,” said the dragon, cheerfully. “Too lazy to make ‘em, to begin with. And if I do read other fellows my poetry, I’m always ready to listen to theirs!”

“Oh, dear!” cried the Boy, “I wish you’d try and grasp the situation properly. When the other people find you out, they’ll come after you with spears and swords and all sorts of things. You’ll have to be exterminated, according to their way of looking at it! You’re a scourge, and a pest, and a baneful monster!”

St. George and the dragon agree to stage a dramatic sham fight before the cheering townsfolk, ending when St. George spears the dragon in a theatrical yet harmless manner, and then dragon and St. George and townsfolk all traipse back to town and have a feast and the dragon gets just a little bit drunk, and sings as St. George and the boy see him home.

Comments

[sovay]

Kenneth Grahame’s The Reluctant Dragon, an enchanting children’s fantasy illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard of Winne the Pooh fame.

I grew up on that! I haven't read it in ages, but I have fond memories and am glad to hear they are justified.

[osprey_archer]

It's a lot of fun! A really charming old-fashioned fairy tale.

[thisbluespirit]

Aw, sounds very nice!

[osprey_archer]

A very pleasant day!

[asakiyume]

Aww, what a sweet story!

(And good birthday food)

[osprey_archer]

Sometimes you just want to read a nice tale of a boy befriending a sleepy sonnet-writing dragon.

[kore]

That sounds like a sweet birthday!

[osprey_archer]

It was!

I actually almost picked up the Sweetman biography of Mary Renault from the library, but then I thought, perhaps Mary Renault's mother is not cheerful birthday fare.

[landofnowhere]

I'm not sure if I've actually read *The Reluctant Dragon*, but my sister was the Boy in a production of it which toured around elementary schools, and I remember it being delightful!

[osprey_archer]

That DOES sound delightful! It must make a wonderful play.

[lucymonster]

Happy birthday! ❤️ It sounds like it was a delicious one, although better luck next time with the appetiser smorgasbord. (God, what a lovely dinner idea! All that variety!)

[osprey_archer]

Appetizer smorgasbord is often the BEST way to experience a restaurant. Turn any restaurant into a tapas bar! Try all the things!

[oracne]

Happy Late Birthday!

[osprey_archer]

Thank you!

[lokifan]

Awww what an adorable-sounding book!

Appetiser smorgasboards for dinner are GREAT :D I do it quite a lot, especially since the best veggie options imo are usually the sides.

[osprey_archer]

It's adorable and very short, which is the perfect combo for a birthday book!

YES, another fan of appetizer smorgasbord. It's just so fun! So many dishes to try, and it makes restaurant dining more home-style and communal because everyone is sharing.