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How to Train Your Dragon

On sale

12th February 2004

Price: £13.99

Select a format

Selected: Audiobook CD / ISBN-13: 9781840329698

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Listen to the books that inspired the How to Train Your Dragon films! This book will be a hit with children and adults alike.

THE STORY BEGINS in the first volume of Hiccup’s How to Train Your Dragon memoirs…

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III was an awesome sword-fighter, a dragon-whisperer and the greatest Viking Hero who ever lived. But it wasn’t always like that.
In fact, in the beginning, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III was the most put upon Viking you’d ever seen. Not loud enough to make himself heard at dinner with his father, Stoick the Vast; not hard enough to beat his chief rival, Snotlout, at Bashyball, the number one school sport and CERTAINLY not stupid enough to go into a cave full of dragons to find a pet… It’s time for Hiccup to learn how to be a Hero.

How to Train Your Dragon is now a major DreamWorks franchise starring Gerard Butler, Cate Blanchett and Jonah Hill and the TV series, Riders of Berk, can be seen on CBeebies and Cartoon Network.

What's Inside

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Reviews

Amanda Craig, The Times
... inspired series ... its enchantment lies primarily in the comical, affectionate and often irritable relationship between Hiccup (the only nerd in the violent Viking Hooligan tribe) and his runty little dragon Toothless.
Amanda Craig, Times
a hilarious and gripping adventure, beautifully paced and studded with great dramatic scenes.
Julia Eccleshare, Guardian children's editor
If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature.
Torquay Herald Express
What a fab book ... will definitely make you laugh out loud!
The Independent
Quite simply, Cressida Cowell has an exceptional ability to give children what they like. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is a Viking who doesn't fit in: gawky and geeky, his adventures with his hunting-dragon Toothless are madcap and marvellous. Give it to a child, and see them become engrossed immediately.
Julia Eccleshare, Guardian’s children’s books editor
If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature
Charlotte Tarling, Year 6, Country Child
Filled with thrilling adventure and action-packed heroes
Amanda Craig, Independent on Sunday
I can't praise this wonderful adventure too highly
Geoffrey Truscott, aged 11, The Glasgow Herald
This light-hearted, well-illustrated mock saga would appeal to girls and boys. My Dad liked it too. More please.
Jamie, aged 9, Daily Record
Has a good story to it
Independent on Sunday
I can't praise this wonderful adventure too highly - in fact, for my money, she's the NEXT BIG THING in children's literature... Read with gigantic gusto by David Tennant, and featuring some shatteringly good sound-effects, this kept us all laughing on the edge of our seats for 3 ½ hours.
The Independent
... one of the most enjoyable and original children's stories I have heard in a long time ... David Tennant reads with outstanding gusto, giving full and varied wellie to the story's rich assortment of Viking and dragon characters.
Nicolette Jones, The Sunday Times
CHILDREN'S BOOK OF THE WEEK: 'This book is great fun and has a Blackadderish sense of humour ... full of the sort of jokes that will make schoolboys snigger.'
Armadillo, Spring 2003
A super story, inventive, ingenious, perpetually surprising. One to cherish.
Waterstones Quarterly Magazine
A wonderfully wittily written and illustrated story.
The Financial Times
... raucous and slapstick... liberally illustrated with [Cressida Cowell's] riotous drawings, notes and maps.
Lindsey Fraser, Sunday Herald, Glasgow
How to Train Your Dragon is a delightful narrative caper... It offers a challenging read to 11-year-olds, and rewards reading aloud, especially for those who relish an element of theatre at story time.
Mania
If you haven't already read this book, you're missing out on one of the most unlikely heroes ever to end up in print.
Amanda Craig, The Times
PRAISE FOR HICCUP: 'Fiercely exciting and laugh-aloud funny, it is as full of joy for children of 7+ who have given up reading as for those who love it.'
Amanda Craig, The Times
Irresistably funny, exciting and endearing
The Herald
'Cowell writes laugh-out-loud books with plenty of boy appeal Cowells anarchic drawings suit the slapstick humour.'
Observer
Hilarious and charming.
Independent on Sunday
I can't praise this wonderful adventure too highly - in fact, for my money, she's the NEXT BIG THING in children's literature... Read with gigantic gusto by David Tennant, and featuring some shatteringly good sound-effects, this kept us all laughing on the edge of our seats for 3 ? hours.
Guardian children's editor
If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature.
St Paul Pioneer Press
Cowell brings Hiccup to life in this silly and delightful little novel.
Books Quaterly (Waterstones)
The combination of cartoons with sharp wit is what makes this book so uniquely special
Guardian children's editor
'If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature.'
Books Quaterly (Waterstones)
"The combination of cartoons with sharp wit is what makes this book so uniquely special"
Sarra Manning, Sarra Manning, Red Magazine Online
Pretty much everyone I know who has children adores these audiobooks and have listened to them on many a long (and otherwise fractious) car journey. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is a famous dragon trainer but he had to learn the hard way. Proper LOL funny as read by former Doctor Who David Tennant, you'll love listening to them too.
The Sunday Telegraph
The first in the successful series... perfect for tricky boy readers, as the action scenes are first-class.
The Daily Telegraph
Mentioned in the 100 Best Children's Books Ever (Novels)
If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature
Country Child
Filled with thrilling adventure and action-packed heroes
The Times
By turns hilarious and wise, it's never predictable, brilliantly illustrated and always delightful
Sunday Express
Proper modern classics
guardian.co.uk
Hilarious
Observer
A laugh out loud romp of a Viking adventure
Dundee Courier
The start of the most original series for kids in ages. Funny, clever and great for the whole family to share
Kirkus
Her genuinely fierce, intelligent and scary dragons nearly steal the show, but Hiccup and his diminutive sidekick ultimately come out on top, both displaying a proper hero's mix of quick wit, courage and loyalty
The Independent
One of the most enjoyable and original children's stories I have heard in a long time
Independent on Sunday
I can't praise this wonderful adventure too highly
Independent on Sunday
Bulging with good jokes, funny drawings and dramatic scenes, it is absolutely wonderful
The Glasgow Herald
This light-hearted, well-illustrated mock saga would appeal to girls and boys. My Dad liked it too. More please.
The Glasgow Herald
What we have here is Harry Potter meets Blackadder. The result is a story that anyone with a tolerance of snot and gore would find richly entertaining
Books Quarterly (Waterstones)
Cowell's wittily written books have become today's childhood must-read stories
Torquay Herald Express
This book will definitely make you laugh out loud
The Daily Telegraph
Gripping adventure stories complete with quests and battles, a vivdly imagined alternative world
The Daily Telegraph
Top stuff
The Spectator
Cressida Cowell's series of the memoirs of Hiccup the Viking are funny, outrageous and will lure in the most reluctant reader
The Times
Funny, thrilling and ideal for children needing to discover the hero inside themselves
Dorset Echo
Wise, colourful and funny
Hay Festival of the Arts
Cowell is a master of storytelling...On a profound level, this series celebrates divergence and being true to oneself, teaching children that they don't have to be carbon copies of their parents
The Independent
Cressida Cowell's How to Train Your Dragon books fill every spread with scales and fangs and typographical jeux d'esprit
Time Out
Descriptive and flowing, Cowell's Dragon novels have become deserved hits at the cinema, too.
Daily Record
Has a good story to it
The List
Full of bright wit and brutal honesty, this is a brilliant book that launched a huge series ... This is a fantastic adventure that explores failure as well as success and weighs the cost of being different against the price of fitting in with sneaky maturity and shining humour
Books Quaterly (Waterstones)
' The combination of cartoons with sharp wit is what makes this book so uniquely special.'
Waterstones Books Quarterly
'... full of charm ... imaginative and bursting with inventive, off-the-wall humour, making them great stories to be read aloud.'
Writeaway.org
'another triumph from the creative pen of Cressida Cowell.'
Amanda Craig, The Times
'... inspired series ... its enchantment lies primarily in the comical, affectionate and often irritable relationship between Hiccup (the only nerd in the violent Viking Hooligan tribe) and his runty little dragon Toothless.'
Amanda Craig, The Times
Fiercely exciting and laugh-aloud funny, it is as full of joy for children of 7+ who have given up reading as for those who love it.
Nicolette Jones, The Sunday Times
CHILDREN'S BOOK OF THE WEEK: This book is great fun and has a Blackadderish sense of humour ... full of the sort of jokes that will make schoolboys snigger.
Sunday Herald, Glasgow
How to Train Your Dragon is a delightful narrative caper... It offers a challenging read to 11-year-olds, and rewards reading aloud, especially for those who relish an element of theatre at story time.
The Financial Times
... raucous and slapstick ... liberally illustrated with [Cressida Cowell's] riotous drawings, notes and maps.
Books for Keeps
[Cressida Cowell] puts a contemporary spin on the old brains over brawn moral and brings the story to a climax with a thrilling dragon duel. Lots for lots of different readers to enjoy.
Amanda Craig, Times
'a hilarious and gripping adventure, beautifully paced and studded with great dramatic scenes.'
Independent on Sunday
Bulging with good jokes, funny drawings and dramatic scenes, it is absolutely wonderful.
The Herald
Cowell writes laugh-out-loud books with plenty of boy appeal. Cowell's anarchic drawings suit the slapstick humour.
Julia Eccleshare, Guardian children's editor
'If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature.'
Torquay Herald Express
'What a fab book ... will definitely make you laugh out loud!'
Woman's Weekly
Highly original. Uproarious.
Books Quaterly (Waterstones)
The combination of cartoons with sharp wit is what makes this book so uniquely special.
Waterstones Books Quarterly
... full of charm ... imaginative and bursting with inventive, off-the-wall humour, making them great stories to be read aloud.
Writeaway.org
another triumph from the creative pen of Cressida Cowell.