Have you ever had an opportunity that calls you to quickly change careers? That happens in His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik, an alternative history novel set in the Napoleonic era when captain Will Laurence and his crew of the H.M.S. Reliant capture a French frigate. In the ship’s hold, he finds an unhatched dragon egg. As they make their way back to England, something remarkable happens; the egg hatches. An unusual all-black dragon with six spines on his wings emerges and starts to explore the ship, sniffing and looking inquisitively at everything. The dragon eventually stops in front of Laurence and asks him a question. Laurence names the dragon Temeraire—this will change Laurence’s career.
Laurence’s new duty to the Crown is to leave the H.M.S. Reliant and join Britain’s Aerial Corps. Usually, an aeronaut is chosen specifically for each type of dragon. They will need to make a special exception since Temeraire and Laurence are already bonded. Upon arrival, it becomes obvious that Temeraire’s features are different than the Western European dragons training at the base. Laurence and Temeraire must work together to overcome these obstacles if they are to help defend England from Napoleon.
Peter Miller is a specialist at Hennepin County Library-Maple Grove Library. Read more at hclib.org.
