Firetongue was born without the ability to breath fire and longs to be like all his friends. But Uncle Inferno tells him the only way to fix things is to go to Mt Furnace and steal the special fire rock from the Fire God, who will burn him to a crisp if he catches Firetongue.
Firetongue journeys to Mt Furnace and finds both the special fire rock and the Fire God. But neither is anything like he expected.
Excerpt
He looked around for a place to sleep, somewhere safe and warm and closed in, for dragons don't like sleeping in the open. But all he could find was a gap in the mountain's side. It looked a bit of a squeeze. However, it was better than nothing, he told himself as he pushed his way inside.
To Firetongue's surprise the crack was longer than he had thought. And soon it started to widen out, while the air became warmer. But it was very dark. Like all dragons, Firetongue could see enough in the dark to be able to make his way. Only he really didn't like darkness. Oh well, at least he would sleep warm. And it might be even warmer further in. With this thought, he carried on.
Some time later the crack became a tunnel. Firetongue realized, in surprise, that it was no longer dark. There was golden light ahead shot through with rainbow hues. The sight was so beautiful it didn't occur to him that there might be something evil lurking there. He quickened his pace.
Professional Reviews
Nine-year-old Nathan Adams writes
Firetongue is a little dragon without fire. He gets teased a lot and gets left out of the fire games 'cause most dragons have to have fire breath to play most of them. Firetongue is really lonely until he meets Firegoddess.
I love stories about dragons and I liked this one a lot. I thought it was cool that Firetongue and Firegoddess are a lot alike. I had fun reading this book. It was a really neat story with a great ending.
Review by: Nathaniel Adams age 9, Son of Sue Anne Adams
Chrstine Spindler
Despite his fiery name, Firetongue is a dragon without any fire in him. He feels like a social pariah and desperately seeks help. Young and inexperienced as he is, he believes the outrageous tale Uncle Inferno tells him: that he should have been given fire rock to eat as a baby. Now it's too late, but there's a way to correct the mistake, and that's going to Mount Furnace where the Fire God guards a special fire rock. Inferno is sure the boy will not do any such nonsense, but Firetongue is determined to become a "normal" dragon. And off he walks into a frightening adventure full of surprises.
The story has some neat twists ...
Firetongue, the problem-ridden dragon boy, is a character kids can easily relate to. The Little Dragon Without Fire is funny and entertaining all the way, with a happy ending totally unlike the one I expected. A perfect bedtime read-to book that guarantees exciting dreams.
Rita Hestand, who gives it a five-star rating, writes:
Firetongue was a young dragon who could not breathe fire like all the other dragons in his community. He felt very sad, because the others made fun of him. He can't even play his favorite games, because he has no fire. In fact he feels so bad about it he goes to see Uncle Inferno.
Uncle Inferno is well known in the community for listening to others and telling great tales. When Firetongue told him of his plight, Uncle Inferno understood and told him how to go about getting the fire breath. It was dangerous, but it was the only solution.
Firetongue believed Uncle Inferno and set about his adventure immediately.
Laraine Anne Barker brings us a well written story of dragons, adventure and courage. She weaves a magic that will delight your children and make them eager to turn the page. I highly recommend this one.
