How To Train Your Dragon: How To Speak Dragonese

Cressida Cowell was the Waterstones Children's Laureate (2019-2022). She is the author and illustrator of the bestselling The Wizards of Once and How to Train Your Dragon books series, and the author of the Emily Brown picture books, illustrated by Neal Layton.


The Wizards of Once series has been translated into 38 languages and has been signed by DreamWorks Animation. How to Train Your Dragon has sold over 8 million books worldwide in 42 languages and is a major DreamWorks Animation film franchise, as well as being made into a TV series on Netflix and CBBC.


Cressida is an ambassador for the National Literacy Trust and the Reading Agency, a Trustee of World Book Day and a founder patron of the Children's Media Foundation. She has won numerous prizes, including the Gold Award in the Nestle Children's Book Prize.

'If you haven't discovered Hiccup yet, you're missing out on one of the greatest inventions of modern children's literature.' -- Julia Eccleshare, Guardian children's editor 'Irresistably funny, exciting and endearing' -- Amanda Craig, The 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.' -- Nicolette Jones, The Sunday Times A super story, inventive, ingenious, perpetually surprising. One to cherish. -- Armadillo, Spring 2003 A wonderfully wittily written and illustrated story. -- Waterstones Quarterly Magazine 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. -- Lindsey Fraser, Sunday Herald, Glasgow ... raucous and slapstick... liberally illustrated with [Cressida Cowell's] riotous drawings, notes and maps. -- The Financial Times [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. -- Books for Keeps Cowell brings Hiccup to life in this silly and delightful little novel. -- St Paul Pioneer Press Bulging with good jokes, funny drawings and dramatic scenes, it is absolutely wonderful. -- Independent on Sunday 'hilarious' -- www.writeaway.org 'funny and well writen' -- Cheri Lloyd 'another fiendishly funny catalogue of disaster' -- Pet O'Connell We've loved Hiccup's dragon training adventures from the start. (tBk's Top 40 Children's Books) -- tBk Magazine

Vikings, dragons, Romans and mayhem cavort across the pages in their usual irreverent and hilarious style School Librarian