Dragon Dancer

By Joyce Chng and Jérémy Pailler

It is the eve of Chinese New Year and Yao is preparing to wake the ancient sky dragon, Shen Long, from his year-long sleep. From the moment Shen Long opens his great amber eyes and unfurls his silver-blue tail, Yao will be propelled on a magical journey through the skies of Singapore to battle the bad luck of the previous year and usher in the good. Will he succeed? Will his grandfather watch over him and protect him from harm?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lantana Publishing
• Release date: Dec 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9780993225338

Joyce Chng

Joyce Chng is a Chinese-Singaporean children's book author. Her work is regularly anthologized and she has a passion for steampunk, science fiction, and tales of transfiguration.

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Reviews for Dragon Dancer

[carlathelibrarian · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It is the eve of Chinese New Year and it is time for Yao to wake Shen Long, the sky dragon. Yao's grandfather used to be a dragon dancer, who would collect and dispell the bad luck that had accumulated over the previous year. The story is told from the perspective of Yao, the dragon dancer. To be sucessful as a dancer, you must feel the dragon is alive and that is the way Yao tells the story. You can feel the magic of the dragon as you read this story and gaze at the beautiful and exotic illustrations. The last page of the book gives a brief overview of Chinese New Year celebrations. A great book to add to a library about holidays, muli-culturalism and customs around the world. My grandson loved the illustrations in this book and wanted to know if he could be a dragon dancer. A great addition to a school or public library or even a family collection. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.

[pardamustang · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An ancient dragon and a young boy weave magic together to drive away bad luck and draw in the good. Once a year Shen Long, a great blue-scaled tian long luck dragon, is woken from his slumber to dance the dragon’s dance of luck and prosperity. Always before had it been Grandfather who danced with Shen Long, but this year, Yao must take up the mantle and perform alongside the dragon. Yao hopes to dance well, to honour Grandfather, and prove himself a worthy partner to Shen Long.I love this story! It's all about a new dragon dancer performing the dragon dance for prosperity and luck and a shopping mall. It's the first time he's done the dance alone. At first Yao has some worries, but they quickly fade under the magic of the dance, which we see from Yao’s imaginative perspective. It's a story that pays homage to the true power of our imagination, and it teaches about the luck dances and when/why/where they are done. At the end is an informative section about the Chinese Lunar New Year. This artwork is gorgeous. Shen Long is amazing! I wish I could dance with the dragon. It's clear the artist loves their work, and new the topic well. Sometimes you get art that doesn't match cultural stories because the artist isn't as deeply acquainted with the story. Not so here! I read this with my cubs and it was a big hit with all of them. We have plans to get a hardcopy of the book. ***Many thanks to Netgalley and Myrick Marketing & Media for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.