'Twins Kitty and Harris Hawk have grown up at the airfield where their father works as an engineer. Kitty in particular is obsessed with the idea of becoming an aeronaut but her father thinks children should stay firmly on the ground. When the twins discover a strange and unusually large egg from which a dragon hatches, little do they imagine that this is the first step on a journey that will see them taking to the skies and competing in the first long-distance air race. Can they win the huge prize that’s at stake and will their daring adventure lead their father to change his mind about Kitty’s future?'
Dragonracers takes readers back in time to the early days of aviation to meet Kitty and Harris Hawk, a pair of children whose father works on a small airfield as an aviation engineer. Having grown up on an airfield, the two kids have a deep love of flying, and Kitty dreams that she might one day be a pilot herself. But, her father doesn't think that the air is place for a girl, and doesn't want her to train. And with an upcoming long distance flying race coming up, he's forbidden her from taking part.
However, when she and Harris find a strange egg at the bottom of the pond it opens a world of possibilities for them, especially when Harris tells her that it's a dragon egg. Using Harris' expertise on dragons, the two of them manage to get the egg to hatch and become parents to a baby dragon. As the dragon begins to grow at an incredibly fast rate the two of them must find a way to keep it hidden from everyone else; but then a plan begins to form in their heads. If they can teach the dragon to fly, why can't they enter the race?
One of the more surprising aspects of Dragonracers is that there's a lot more to this than first appears. On the surface it's a child focused adventure story about these two siblings who find a baby dragon and get to take part in this big event, achieving fame and fortune for themselves. But there's also other stuff going on. The story incorporates messages about not giving up chasing your dreams, and to fight against those voices who tell you that you can't do certain things because of your gender (Kitty's father makes it clear he doesn't think girls can be pilots). This message about misogyny and societal expectations also incorporates plot about parents learning and growing thanks to their children; with Kitty's father accepting that he was wrong and improving as a person because of it.
The book also takes some real historical people and events and plays with them a little. The race that happens in the book actually happened, and the people involved in the book were there at the time racing their planes. Though there wasn't actually a dragon in the race as far as historical documents tell us (unless it's being kept very under wraps). Whilst the book changes these events, their inclusion means that any child reading the book who finds it interesting has a starting point in which to explore the subject. They can look into the 1910 London to Manchester air race, or Claude Grahame-White, or Louis Paulhan. This may be a fantastical retelling, but it's also a great starting point for kids with an interest in history or flying.
Best of all though, the book is really easy to get on with. Both Kitty and Harris are really engaging protagonists, and Bunzl very quickly brings them to life and fills them with character. The two of them are lovely to read about, and their relationship feels warm and genuine. Kitty is the more open of the two, but as the book goes on and the dragon is introduced the more reserved dragon obsessed Harris really gets to come out of his shell. I think that young readers will find it easy to connect with both of the siblings, and will very quickly get sucked into their story.
The book also comes with some great illustrations by Lia Visirin, who helps to bring the story to life by illustrating key points. These illustrations help to make certain moments feel more action packed and filled with energy, such as the dragon soaring through the air, but also help with the historical context, giving young readers pretty clear images of the planes used at the time to better help them understand what they were like.
Dragonracers is an enjoyable read that blends together historical events with high fantasy, resulting in a delightful story about two siblings getting to do the impossible.
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