Dragon Girls 6 – Quinn the Jade Treasure Dragon

Maddy Mara's Quinn the Jade Treasure Dragon is a magical adventure for 6 year olds about a shy girl who turns into a dragon with a very big roar.

What happens

It's book six in the Dragon Girls series, and the third quest for the Treasure Dragon Girls. Quinn plays the trumpet. She writes her own tunes, but she's far too shy to play them in front of anyone. So when her band teacher asks her to open tomorrow's concert with a solo, her hands go all sweaty.

Then she hears the forest singing. The jade bead on her friendship bracelet glows, and she steps through a beam of green light into the Magic Forest. There, she's a shimmering green dragon. (And dragons can ROAR.)

Something is wrong though. The forest has gone quiet. The sneaky Shadow Sprites have been stealing its sounds, from the birdsong to the croaking frogs. A little bird called Flutterdash is even losing her voice.

The Tree Queen explains that the Sprites have taken the Heartstring Violin, which keeps every sound in the forest in tune. Quinn is the musical one with the sharp ears, so her friends Mei and Aisha want her to lead. Can a shy girl really be in charge?

What happens next is lovely. Quinn follows the forest's faint heartbeat to a clearing full of dancing badgers in velvet waistcoats. They're drumming on an old violin with no strings!

Young readers will love the magic and the sparkle. But what makes this one special is Quinn herself. Lots of children know how it feels to be quiet on the outside with loads going on inside. Watching her find her voice in the forest is really satisfying.

Those Shadow Sprites are whispery and annoying rather than scary, so it's a gentle adventure. It's a great pick for a newly confident reader who loves friendship stories.

What to read next

If they love Quinn and her friends, go back to Mei the Ruby Treasure Dragon, where the three girls first become friends at jewellery class and Mei is the one the forest calls.