The Dragon Hunters

In this underwhelming opening entry in the Dragon Brothers picture book trilogy, two brothers attempt to retrieve their dog, Coco, from the dragon that has snatched her up; originally self-published in New Zealand, the books are slated to be published on an accelerated schedule in the U.S. Writing in often overworked rhymes, Russell follows the brothers, Flynn and Paddy, across their island home and up a mountain to the dragon’s den, where they narrowly escape with Coco, thanks to Flynn’s bravery and Paddy’s quick thinking: “Now, never underestimate/ a boy’s ability./ For with his rope the lad had tied/ the dragon to a tree.” Choi brings an appropriately cinematic look to the brothers’ death-defying quest, though both the central images and supplemental spot illustrations have a rough, unfinished look. By downloading a free augmented reality app, children can watch animations of the boys’ adventures on maps that appear on the endpapers, but because the AR elements aren’t integrated into the story in a meaningful way, they seem more likely to distract from the reading experience than amplify it. Ages 4–8. (Apr.)