The Awakening Storm: A Graphic Novel (City of Dragons #1)

by Jaimal Yogis, Vivian Truong (Illustrator)

Overview

Grace and her friends must protect a newly hatched dragon from mysterious evildoers.

When Grace moves to Hong Kong with her mom and new stepdad, her biggest concern is making friends at her fancy new boarding school. But when a mysterious old woman gifts her a dragon egg during a field trip, Grace discovers that the wonderful stories of dragons she heard when she was a young girl might actually be real—especially when the egg hatches overnight.

The dragon has immense powers that Grace has yet to understand. And that puts them both in danger from mysterious forces intent on abusing the dragon's power. And now it's up to Grace and her school friends to uncover the sinister plot threatening the entire city!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338660425
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	09/21/2021
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	65,958
Product dimensions:	8.90(w) x 5.80(h) x 0.60(d)
Lexile:	GN390L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

JAIMAL YOGIS is the co-creator, with Vivian Truong, of the City of Dragons series. He is the author of Saltwater Buddha, The Fear Project, All Our Waves Are Water, and the Mop Rides series. His writing has also appeared in The Atlantic, ESPN Magazine, and The Washington Post. He lives in Maryland.
VIVIAN TRUONG is a comic artist who has created artwork for Riot Games, miHoYo, Rebellion, and more. She co-created the City of Dragons series with Jaimal Yogis and Cooking with Monsters with Jordan Alsaqa. Her other work includes the Punches and Plants webcomic series for the popular MOBA game League of Legends, and she works as a storyboard artist for game studios, a digital production studio, and a children’s book publisher. She currently lives in London.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the City of Dragons series:

"A colorful, modern adventure—with dragons as a bonus." — Kirkus Reviews

"A good fit for kids entranced by Rick Riordan's brand of fantasy adventures." — Booklist

From the Publisher

09/03/2021

Gr 4–7—Years after the disappearance of Grace's doting father, her mother has married a redheaded stranger involved in cutting-edge health research, and Grace begins a new life at a Hong Kong international school. While finding her footing, she becomes an unlikely caregiver to an adorable blue water dragon, whom she must protect against those who seek to use the creature's powers for sinister purposes. It's an effective setup to explore how Chinese dragon legends might play out on a modern stage. Veering from teens bumbling through school hallways to high seas hijinks to a literal mad scientist, this is an entertaining tale with explicit roots in myth. The illustrations are colorful and playful, moving the story through its paces at a quick clip. Grace is Asian American, her mother and stepfather are white, and her crack team of international school dragon defenders include a Hong Kong local, an inventive Indian kid, and an Australian Aboriginal character—a dynamic group of friends who seem poised for more opportunities for hilarity and heroism in future books. VERDICT An engaging read with some superhero-style peril and violence, this is a story of bravery and self-discovery.—Emilia Packard, Tokyo

School Library Journal

2021-07-27
A dragon egg sends a tween girl and her friends from one end of Hong Kong to the other, searching for answers.

Three years after her father’s unexpected death, Grace’s mother has remarried, and the two have moved to Hong Kong to live with Grace’s new stepfather, who works for a technology company in the city. Grace is prepared to enter an international school and meet new friends, but she isn’t so prepared for the egg a mysterious woman gifts her—one that quickly hatches into what is undeniably a dragon. With the help of her new friends from school, Grace needs to figure out how to take care of the dragon and keep him secret because both hired guns and dark forces are looking for him. With magical beings from both sides closing in, it becomes clear that there’s more to Grace herself than meets the eye, and the truth lies in the old stories her father and grandfather used to tell her. Featuring a multiethnic cast—Grace’s mother and stepfather are White; her father is Chinese; and her international school friends are from diverse backgrounds—the narrative dwells on the positive aspects of being mixed race. Cinematic movement between panels, quick wit, and an irresistible dragon make for a quick adventure, with setup for more to come.

A colorful, modern adventure—with dragons as a bonus. (Graphic fantasy. 9-13)

Kirkus Reviews