Here be dragons and augmented reality
James Russell used to work for the New Zealand Herald as an editor and journalist/ columnist until the opportunity arose to do what many of us dream about but never get around to: write a series of children’s books. The father of two started with a trilogy of picture books, The Dragon
Brothers, about the adventures of Flynn and Paddy, who live on a remote island which, much to their delight, turns out to be home to a colony of dragons. Russell has now branched out with the first chapter book The Dragon
Defenders, in planned series of at least five Dragon Defender novels for 7- to 12- year- olds.
It’s a smart move to evolve and grow alongside those first readers of the evocatively- illustrated picture books. Having grown up without television, computers and tablets, Flynn and Paddy spend most of their time outdoors, hunting, fishing, riding horses, swimming, diving, sailing and generally becoming adept at living off- grid.
This lively novel follows Flynn and Paddy as they seek to outwit an evil animal collector determined to include a dragon or two in his private zoo and profit from displaying them to the world. They need all their smarts — plus large measures of skill, cunning and bravery — to thwart the Pitbull’s plan.
Obviously, dragons aren’t an original topic for children’s books but Russell has made the books unique by having Flynn and Paddy live on what seems like a fantasy island for many kids ( and their parents who want to ply them away from screen- based entertainments).
But Russell is savvy enough to recognise that most young readers don’t live life off- grid or offline so the novel is among just a handful in the world — and the first in New Zealand — to incorporate digital augmented reality content which is accessed via smartphone or tablet at five places in the book.
My 8- year- old was intrigued by the thought of living away from other people without electricity and other mod cons and having the freedom to roam across an entire island, making friends with animals and dragons.
The story was pacy enough to hold her attention beyond this initial interest and wrapped up to a satisfying conclusion while making her curious about what may happen next.
You can choose whether to view the AR content — it certainly isn’t necessary to understand the book — and I choose not to so I could gauge whether the story was enough to hold Miss 8. Happily, it was and I think we’re in for a real treat when we return to the book to check out the mix of 3D models, 2D animation and video. We’re keen to see where Russell goes with these stories. It’s fair to say that with two young brothers as protagonists, they may appeal more to boys — and encouraging more boys to read is never a bad thing — but I’d like to see their younger sister get the opportunity to join in some of their escapades and adventures to strike a better gender balance.