Belmont dreams of one day becoming a knight. When the other orphans scoff at the suggestion, Belmont sets off on an adventure, determined to prove he can be brave and heroic. Along the way he meets a SNAD (Sensitive New Age Dragon) named Burnie and together they must rescue the beautiful princess Libby from the Putrid Pink Pixies and their mistress, the Redwitch.

Belmont and the Dragon: The Forest of Doom and Gloom is the first in a gorgeous new junior fiction series. The 48 page full-colour format, mixes adventure and humour, with a fast-moving, slightly silly story and cartoon-style illustrations for a combination which emerging readers will adore. The author-illustrator team have both worked in animation, and the book has the feel of a cartoon episode, with the illustrations having depth and the twists of the storyline offering both surprises and laughs. There’s nothing not to like here.

Belmont and the Dragon: The Forest of Doom and Gloom, by Mike Zarb & RobinGold
RandomHouse Australia, 2008

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