2021 EDIT: 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' is such a fun book to read in one day! It's colourful, cosy and chocolatey stuff! It's as addictive as it's ever been. Life lessons can be learned from this all-ages book, too - it's not all sweetness and fantasy.
I'm still waiting for that animated film to be made.
See my original review below for more.
Final Score: 4/5
Original Review:
Who knew that dragons and chocolate could mix so well together? For an adorable, luxurious, fire-breathing and mouth-watering recipe of a children's book?
Welcome to this generation's 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' will make you want to eat every chocolate in every chocolate shop you see. It is inspirational, imaginative, clever and joyous. There is a pinch of 'Oliver Twist' to it as well, with its "outcast-on-the-streets-guided-by-poor-rascally-urchins" plot.
Aventurine is a young and restless dragon living in jewel-hoarded mountains with her territorial family. She is too impatient to think of a clear life goal or passion, unlike the other dragons, who are passionate about things like poetry and philosophy. Not wanting to wait thirty years for her scales to harden and her wings to develop fully for flying, Aventurine sneaks out of her mountain and, on her first hunt for humans, she is tricked by a food mage into drinking a cauldron of his wondrous, aromatic hot chocolate. It is an enchantment made in fear for his life at the hands of the naïve beast. Aventurine was never as ready, nor as knowledgeable about humans, as she once thought - for on her first day of freedom, she is transformed into a human herself! The hot chocolate gave her a twelve-year-old girl's body, and when the food mage leaves her to her own devices, she finds she can never return home under threat of fireballs to warn puny humans away from dragon families.
But through all the hardship, this life-changing experience has helped Aventurine to finally discover her passion - chocolate! "Please sir, can I have some more?" became additionally badass. So she sets off for the nearest town of Drachenburg to become a chocolatier's apprentice, and build her own territory. Nothing is going to stop this fierce dragon heart...
Aventurine is a strong, determined, snarky and funny heroine. Unusual in that she is a dragon in a child's body - only her golden eyes and dragon-skin cloth are what remain of her old self - it is just one of the many characteristics that make her extraordinary. She is like a feral girl raised by dragons, always thinking about biting and clawing at people whenever they annoy her. She knows what she wants and she will take it, and after her encounter with the food mage she has learned her lesson of being too trusting of humans, and so she is cautious and plays them at their own game in the impoverished streets of Drachenburg. She won't become the prey. Money means nothing to her, and typical human behaviours of blending in, following the leader, and not standing out in bright colours baffle her.
Nobody is going to take advantage of Aventurine, or stomp on her dreams. By the end of the second act of her story, as it were, she feels at her lowest point and begins to allow herself moments of weakness, and the reader feels it with her, because they've grown to care for her deeply. Anybody who is unused to failure and learning that life isn't as straightforward as one hopes will understand Aventurine's journey, and identify with her, scales or no scales. Terrible, unfair stuff happens sometimes, and we move on from it. We keep going, because what else are we to do? Self-pity never helped anyone. It's not all fantasy, chocolaty-bliss in 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart': it is an emotional and social, intellectual study that is much appreciated in children's literature.
Other characters are equally colourful and memorable, like Silke, the dark-skinned, cunning-as-hell street rat girl who easily fills the Artful Dodger role in this 'Oliver Twist' retelling. In fact, quite a lot of people are described as having dark skin, which is great. Marina is a stout, golden-skinned chocolatier who makes the best chocolate in town, but has the worst people skills and business sense, caring only about making her chocolate taste perfect, much to her partner Horst's distress. Aventurine warms up to Marina immediately, and loves being her apprentice.
The only things I didn't particularly like in 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' are what I've noticed in Stephanie Burgis's previous book, 'Kat, Incorrigible', which I disliked. Both these books contain a twelve-year-old rebellious, ahead-of-her-time heroine who hates older, snobby women, with far more vehemence than how she views snobby rich men. And in 'Kat, Incorrigible', the main character, Kat, punches a woman so hard on the nose she breaks it, and doesn't regret it; in 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart', Aventurine kicks a nigh-indistinguishable woman-from-high-places in the shin - the only time she actually attacks someone in the story. These instances of physical violence are seen as normal, with barely any repercussions. Both girls also dislike their successful and beautiful older sisters. Overall there is the stereotypical envy, condescension and competitiveness between females. I hope this unchecked internalized misogyny isn't a pattern in Burgis's other books.
But at least 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' has much more happening in it, and more positive female relationships, than in 'Kat, Incorrigible'. The less-obvious, not-cartoony villain roles are a welcome surprise, too. Really, all Aventurine does in her book is live her new life, loving the rich smell and taste of cocoa, mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, spices, and chilli; reminding her of the dragon breath she once felt in her throat. 'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' is similar to 'Kiki's Delivery Service' in book form; in fact I can clearly picture it as a animated film. Make it happen, Hollywood! Think of all the chocolate and dragon plushies it'll help sell!
'The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart' is a delightful treat. It is a well-cooked, well-prepared, dark and light sugary tart: full of the delicious, grounded taste of family bonds, sweets that will change the world, humour and, of course, heart. I cannot recommend it enough. My compliments to the author.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to buy more chocolate.
Final Score: 4/5
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