The Dragon Egg Princess

by Ellen Oh

Overview

Perfect for fans of Wing & Claw, this must-have middle grade novel is from We Need Diverse Books cofounder Ellen Oh!

“Filled with strange terrains, creatures, and magic, this is an enthralling read!”—Soman Chainani, author of the New York Times bestselling School for Good and Evil series

"A rich and wonderfully imagined story about the many ways young people can be powerful and the tremendous benefits of awakening your inner dragon." —Annie Ursu, National Book Award for Young People’s Literature nominee for The Real Boy

“By drawing inspiration from Korean lore and culture, Ellen Oh is helping to reinvigorate the fantasy genre. Readers will love The Dragon Egg Princess for its humor, inventive magic, and thrilling action!” —Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author

In a kingdom filled with magic, Jiho Park and his family are an anomaly—magic doesn’t affect them.

Jiho comes from a long line of forest rangers who protect the Kidahara—an ancient and mysterious wood that is home to powerful supernatural creatures. But Jiho wants nothing to do with the dangerous forest.

Five years ago, his father walked into the Kidahara and disappeared. Just like the young Princess Koko, the only daughter of the kingdom’s royal family. Jiho knows better than anyone else the horrors that live deep in the magical forest and how those who go in never come back.

Now the forest is in danger from foreign forces that want to destroy it, and a long-forgotten evil that’s been lurking deep in the Kidahara for centuries finally begins to awaken. Can a magic-less boy, a fierce bandit leader, and a lost princess join forces and save their worlds before it’s too late?

Massachusetts Children’s Book Award Nominee

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062875808
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/27/2021
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	662,436
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.40(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Ellen Oh is the cofounder of We Need Diverse Books and author of the award-winning Spirit Hunters series for middle grade readers and the Prophecy trilogy (Prophecy, Warrior, and King) for young adults. Originally from New York City, Ellen is a former adjunct college instructor and lawyer with an insatiable curiosity for ancient Asian history. Ellen lives in Bethesda, Maryland, with her husband and three children and has yet to satisfy her quest for a decent bagel. You can visit her online at ellenoh.com.

Editorial Reviews

A rich and wonderfully imagined story about the many ways young people can be powerful and the tremendous benefits of awakening your inner dragon.

Annie Ursu

Plenty of twists and turns to keep you racing through the pages.

Shannon Messenger

This is a fast-paced and readable standalone fantasy that quickly grows to epic proportions…and readers may appreciate the fantastical take on environmental stewardship.” 

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

01/13/2020

This Korean mythology–inspired adventure follows a teenager whose family legacy of magical nullification draws him into the schemes of those looking to exploit his home’s resources. In Joson, a kingdom where magic holds strong despite other countries’ technological advances, 14-year-old Jiho Park struggles with the expectation that he become a ranger like his paternal ancestors and protect the Kidahara, especially since his father voluntarily walked into the supernatural forest five years ago and never returned. Desperate to help his beleaguered family, Jiho agrees to serve as a guide for Omni Murtagh, a foreign company intent on razing the forest in the name of modernity—little realizing their even darker agenda. On the trail, Jiho must join a long-missing princess and the Kidahara’s inhabitants to save the land. The world Oh conjures is populated by diverse and fanciful characters, but the juxtaposition of Jiho’s secluded homeland and the modern trappings of the outside world is less effective than one might hope. Slight characterization and inconsistent pacing lead to a hasty climax and abrupt conclusion. Nevertheless, this enjoyable read should appeal to fantasy fans. Ages 8–12. Agent: Marietta B. Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

“Filled with strange terrains, creatures, and magic, this is an enthralling read!” — Soman Chainani, author of the New York Times bestselling School for Good and Evil series

A rich and wonderfully imagined story about the many ways young people can be powerful and the tremendous benefits of awakening your inner dragon. — Annie Ursu, National Book Award for Young People’s Literature nominee for The Real Boy

“By drawing inspiration from Korean lore and culture, Ellen Oh is helping to reinvigorate the fantasy genre. Readers will love The Dragon Egg Princess for its humor, inventive magic, and thrilling action!” — Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author

With its quick pace, modern heroes, and choreographed action, this is a strong fantasy title with K-pop undertones. — Kirkus Reviews

Plenty of twists and turns to keep you racing through the pages. — Shannon Messenger, New York Times bestselling author

"This enjoyable read should appeal to fantasy fans." — Publishers Weekly

Readers will love The Dragon Egg Princess for its humor, inventive magic, and thrilling action! — Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author

“This is a fast-paced and readable standalone fantasy that quickly grows to epic proportions…and readers may appreciate the fantastical take on environmental stewardship.” 
— Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher

By drawing inspiration from Korean lore and culture, Ellen Oh is helping to reinvigorate the fantasy genre. Readers will love The Dragon Egg Princess for its humor, inventive magic, and thrilling action!

Linda Sue Park

Filled with strange terrains, creatures, and magic, this is an enthralling read!

Soman Chainani

A rich and wonderfully imagined story about the many ways young people can be powerful and the tremendous benefits of awakening your inner dragon.

 Annie Ursu

02/01/2020

Gr 4–7—Three young people join forces to save a world where magic and technology uneasily coexist. In four of the Five Kingdoms, technology (internal combustion engines, automatic weapons, universal translators) is the norm, but in Joson magic still rules—except for Jiho Park and his sisters, who nullify magic. Five years after Joson's young Princess Koko disappears, the king's half-brother is attempting to usurp the throne. Desperate for work, 14-year-old Jiho takes a job with Omni Murtagh Inc, the company trying to forge a path through the Kidahara, the mysterious forest that protects Joson from the outside world. There, he and his newfound friends from all over the Five Kingdoms find themselves in a secret realm filled with magical beings, plus Princess Koko and Jiho's missing father. Koko is decidedly not human, and everyone is hunting her. Add to this the leader of a Robin Hood-esque community of bandits: 15-year-old Micah, who discovers just in time that she has become the unwitting pawn of the evil wizard Luzee, who has been pulling everyone's strings from her centuries' long imprisonment underneath a dormant volcano. Lots of action, magic, humor; a touch of family angst; and a modern feel in narration and details make this an easy sell for readers looking for plot more than character development. VERDICT Fans of "Harry Potter" and other magical tales that are rooted in the real world will find this series starter entertaining indeed.—Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library

School Library Journal

Amielynn Abellera’s narration sometimes seems like a full-cast performance as she enacts the many characters in this middle-grade fantasy inspired by Korean folklore. Her voice is mild and unassuming as Jiho, a boy who comes from a long line of protectors of a magical wood who clearly doesn’t understand his power. Princess KoKo is also afraid of her power—the ability to become a dragon. Abellera’s high-pitched portrayal captures her youth and uncertainty. Contrast comes in Abellera’s voicings of the villains. Coldness characterizes greedy Prince Roku, who ensnares the unwitting Jiho to help him as he seeks to exploit and destroy the magical forest. Sorceress Luzee is portrayed with such fury that it’s clear why Jiho and KoKo finally act upon their true strengths. S.W. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2020 - AudioFile

Amielynn Abellera’s narration sometimes seems like a full-cast performance as she enacts the many characters in this middle-grade fantasy inspired by Korean folklore. Her voice is mild and unassuming as Jiho, a boy who comes from a long line of protectors of a magical wood who clearly doesn’t understand his power. Princess KoKo is also afraid of her power—the ability to become a dragon. Abellera’s high-pitched portrayal captures her youth and uncertainty. Contrast comes in Abellera’s voicings of the villains. Coldness characterizes greedy Prince Roku, who ensnares the unwitting Jiho to help him as he seeks to exploit and destroy the magical forest. Sorceress Luzee is portrayed with such fury that it’s clear why Jiho and KoKo finally act upon their true strengths. S.W. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2020 - AudioFile

2019-11-24
Inspired by Korean folklore, this is a fresh yet ancient take on middle-grade fantasy, filled with magic, supernatural creatures, the rise of darkness, and a dragon.

Jiho comes from a long line of forest rangers, protectors of the Kidahara, the magical woods in the center of the country. Five years ago, Jiho's father walked into the woods never to be seen again, just like Princess Koko. Joson's king, still pining for his daughter, is being challenged by his younger half brother, Prince Roku, who enlists foreign aid to wipe out the deadly forest in the name of progress. Jiho, whose very presence negates magic, must band together with a rich collection of magical forest creatures and kids from outside Joson to stop the awakening of Luzee, the dark sorceress bent on destroying the world. The plot meanders at the start but gathers enough speed to keep the pages turning. Familial betrayal, environmental destruction, and the trickiness of trust collide in an existential race to stop the devastation. Themes recognizable from fantasy favorites such as The Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, and even Harry Potter are reconfigured with Asian-inspired settings and multicultural characters whose names and appearances are both Asian- and Western-derived. The familiarity, however, is spiced with enough novelty to satisfy those who devour fantasy titles.

With its quick pace, modern heroes, and choreographed action, this is a strong fantasy title with K-pop undertones. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews