THE ICE DRAGON

In a clear attempt to capitalize on the wild popularity of the HBO series Game of Thrones,Martin’s 1980 novella sees a second repackaging with new illustrations by Royo, replacing the 2006 edition illustrated by Yvonne Gilbert.

No alterations have been made to the story, aside from setting it all in blue type. Adara, a motherless “winter child,” loves the ice dragon that visits her every year. A cold, contained little girl, Adara keeps to herself, her grieving father and older siblings just as happy to be too busy for her. She gives all the emotion she withholds from her family to the ice dragon, first touching it at age 4 and riding it at 5, all in secret. As this is the world of Game of Thrones, war is being waged all around, though Adara’s remote northern country remains largely untouched, save for the annual visits by her uncle, who rides a fire dragon for the king. But the war eventually comes to them the year she turns 7, when the enemy’s dragonriders overpower the king’s and begin to burn everything in sight—till Adara and her ice dragon fly. Like the type, Royo’s lush ink-and-wash illustrations are all set in blue, heightening the icy feel. They sprawl across spreads, complementing the generously leaded text and providing ample resting place for readers’ eyes. Despite the war and destruction, this is very much a children’s story, told in a distantly folkloric tone that evokes the stylings of Jane Yolen.

Adult fans will find neither gore nor sex, but kids will find an evocative original fairy tale with an unexpectedly complex protagonist