Title: Clarence the Candy Eating Dragon
Author: Sue Walters
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 978-1-6698-1981-3
Pages: 26
Genre: Illustrated Children’s
Reviewed by: Beth Adams
Pacific Book Review
Author Sue Walters has created a delightful, playful, and humorous book all youngsters will like to read staring her personified dragon character Clarence.
Hiding behind large stalagmites and stalactites (called by the children stickie-uppies and stickie-downies) Clarence watched Sabine and Wesley as they explored the cave, being curious kids but not frightened. Wesley pulls out some candy from his pocket but when they hear some sounds coming from deeper inside the cave, the children run out and back to the campsite. Dropping the candy in their haste, Clarence picks it up and begins to eat it – “yummy” he says to the bird Shoo-Shoo. Eventually Clarence burps and is overcome by a stomach ache from the sugary candy – an item surely not on a dragon’s
healthy diet menu. The book continues with Clarence and Shoo-Shoo discussing how it is best not to eat human food; then Clarence goes down to the river to cool off.
This book made me laugh a few times at its intrinsic jokes and subtle humor. For one, Shoo-Shoo got its name from the campers always saying, “SHOO….SHOO” when he’d fly by a picnic table to eat crumbs. Also, the word “twittered” was used in a sentence, no doubt to educate children on the popular word “Tweet” used so often in social media nowadays.
The illustrations are eye-candy for the youngsters and very well coordinated with the text of the story. Clarence is drawn with a diaper around his legs and tail, offering the concept of being a young dragon. No, there is not any fire-breathing scary stuff, rather instead Clarence is drawn with a belly full of colorful gum-ball type designs, looking more like a playful toy or candy vending machine than something to be feared. The moral of this story is simply do not feed wild animals, and be mindful when out in nature about leaving stuff around … and don’t litter. As for Clarence, he needs to be mindful of what he eats, candy is not dragon food, and actions have their consequences.
Sue Walters hints to future episodes of Clarence, so fans of Clarence should keep your eyes out for new books – and your candy in your pocket!
