Kenny and the Book of Beasts

by Tony DiTerlizzi Narrated by Alan Cumming

Overview

In this highly anticipated sequel to New York Times bestselling and Caldecott Honor-winning author Tony DiTerlizzi's Kenny and the Dragon, Kenny must cope with many changes in his life-including the fear that he's losing his best friend.

What can come between two best friends?

Time has passed since Kenny Rabbit's last adventure with his best friend, the legendary dragon Grahame, and a lot has changed in the sleepy village of Roundbrook.

For starters, Kenny has a whole litter of baby sisters. His friends are at different schools and Sir George is off adventuring.

At least Kenny still has his very best friend, Grahame. That's before Dante arrives. Dante is a legendary manticore and an old friend of Grahame's. Old friends spend a lot of time catching up. And that catching up does not involve Kenny.

But there's a Witch to defeat, a pal to rescue, and a mysterious book to unlock. And those are quests for best friends, not old friends. Right?

Editorial Reviews

NOVEMBER 2020 - AudioFile

Alan Cumming returns to narrate this sequel to Tony DiTerlizzi’s KENNY AND THE DRAGON. This time, Kenny Rabbit and other small animals join forces to rescue Kenny’s best friend, Grahame the dragon, from a witch who traps rare legendary creatures inside a magical book. Cumming is clearly having lots of fun while giving distinctive comical voices to Kenny’s numerous baby sisters, as well as a cast of other anthropomorphic and mythical animals. Best of all is his portrayal of Grahame. In a droning bass, Cumming conveys the beast’s physical presence and personality in a way that will delight listeners. While the lively illustrations in the text enhance the joy of this production, Cumming’s narration can definitely stand alone. S.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

"A long-eared young hero takes on a witch bent on trapping rare legendary creatures in a magical book.

Not so much a pastiche of E. Nesbit’s short story “Book of Beasts” as an original novel with cribbed elements, this adventuresome outing regathers and expands the animal cast of DiTerlizzi’s 2008 reworking of The Reluctant Dragon (titled Kenny & the Dragon) for a fresh challenge...this oblique homage to a now-creaky classic is lit by friendships, heroic feats, and exceptional art." - Kirkus Reviews

"This may be a cozy world filled with darling animals—DiTerlizzi’s fabulous illustrations bring them adorably to life—but the stakes are high, and the lessons on friendship, acceptance, and the dangers of prejudice are meaningful. It’s certainly worth the return to the remarkable Roundbrook and its residents." - Booklist

NOVEMBER 2020 - AudioFile

Alan Cumming returns to narrate this sequel to Tony DiTerlizzi’s KENNY AND THE DRAGON. This time, Kenny Rabbit and other small animals join forces to rescue Kenny’s best friend, Grahame the dragon, from a witch who traps rare legendary creatures inside a magical book. Cumming is clearly having lots of fun while giving distinctive comical voices to Kenny’s numerous baby sisters, as well as a cast of other anthropomorphic and mythical animals. Best of all is his portrayal of Grahame. In a droning bass, Cumming conveys the beast’s physical presence and personality in a way that will delight listeners. While the lively illustrations in the text enhance the joy of this production, Cumming’s narration can definitely stand alone. S.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2020-05-17
A long-eared young hero takes on a witch bent on trapping rare legendary creatures in a magical book.

Not so much a pastiche of E. Nesbit’s short story “Book of Beasts” as an original novel with cribbed elements, this adventuresome outing regathers and expands the animal cast of DiTerlizzi’s 2008 reworking of The Reluctant Dragon (titled Kenny & the Dragon) for a fresh challenge. As if coping with a dozen baby sisters and tending the bookshop of his questing mentor, Sir George E. Badger, aren’t hard enough, Kenny Rabbit feels abandoned by his best friend, dessert-loving dragon Grahame—who happily recognizes the supposedly mythical manticore that springs from the pages of a grimoire as an acquaintance from olden days. Avid to collect magical creatures of all sorts, the book’s owner, sinister opossum Eldritch Nesbit, tempts Kenny into an ill-considered bargain. But once he sees not only the manticore, but Grahame too snapped up, Kenny joins allies, notably his redoubtable crush Charlotte the squirrel, in a rumbustious rescue that also frees a host of unicorns and other long-vanished marvels. Aside from the odd griffin or al-mi’raj (a horned rabbit from Persian lore and an outlier in an otherwise Eurocentric cast), everyone in the lively, accomplished illustrations, from Kenny’s impossibly adorable sibs on, sports amusingly anthropomorphic dress and body language.

This oblique homage to a now-creaky classic is lit by friendships, heroic feats, and exceptional art. (Fantasy. 9-11)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940177334448
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	09/22/2020
Series:	Kenny Rabbit Series , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

Read an Excerpt

Chapter I: Wait for Me

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