''My Father's Dragon'' is a 1948 children's novel by

Ruth Stiles Gannett Ruth Stiles Gannett Kahn (born August 12, 1923) is an American children's writer best known for ''My Father's Dragon'' and its two sequels—collectively sometimes called the My Father's Dragon or the Elmer and the Dragons series or trilogy. Educ ...

, with illustrations by her stepmother Ruth Chrisman Gannett. The novel is about a young boy, Elmer, who runs away to Wild Island to rescue a baby dragon. Both a

Newbery Honor Book The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished cont ...

and an

ALA Notable Book American Library Association Notable lists are announced each year in January by various divisions within the American Library Association (ALA). There are six lists, part of the larger ALA awards structure. * ''ALA Notable Books for Adults'' (est ...

, it is the first book of a trilogy whose other titles are ''

Elmer and the Dragon ''Elmer and the Dragon'' is the second in the '' My Father's Dragon'' trilogy of children's novels by Ruth Stiles Gannett. It is preceded by '' My Father's Dragon'' and followed by '' The Dragons of Blueland''. In this book, Elmer Elevator and hi ...

'' and '' The Dragons of Blueland''. All three were published in a 50-year anniversary edition as ''Three Tales of My Father's Dragon''. A Japanese animated film based on the original novel and its illustrations premiered in 1997, while the character Boris the Dragon was produced into a plush toy designed by Sunflower Publishing Company and released in the fall of the same year. A second animated film, based on the trilogy in general, with animation production by

Cartoon Saloon Cartoon Saloon is an Irish animation film, short film and television studio based in Kilkenny which provides film TV and short film services. The studio is best known for its animated feature films ''The Secret of Kells'', ''Song of the Sea'', ' ...

, was produced on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

in November 11, 2022. The narrative mode of the original novel is unusual in that the narrator refers to the protagonist only as "my father", giving the impression that this is a true story that happened long ago. The other two books in the trilogy are narrated in the third person. The

illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vid ...

s are by Ruth Chrisman Gannett and hand-drawn in black and white with a grease crayon on grained paper. Gannett also illustrated a number of other children's and adult books, including ''

Tortilla Flat ''Tortilla Flat'' (1935) is an early John Steinbeck novel set in Monterey, California. The novel was the author's first clear critical and commercial success. The book portrays a group of 'paisanos'—literally, countrymen—a small band of err ...

'' by

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...

Awards, nominations, and recognition

''My Father's Dragon'' was one runner-up for the 1949

Newbery Medal The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

, by which the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...

annually recognizes the year's best American children's book. It was also nominated for the

Ambassador Book Award The Ambassador Book Award (1986–2011) was presented annually by the English-Speaking Union. It recognized important literary and non-fiction works that contributed to the understanding and interpretation of American life and culture. Winners of ...

in 1948. Based on a 2007 online poll, the

National Education Association The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...

listed it as one of "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children". In 2012 it was ranked number 49 among all-time children's novels in a survey published by ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

''.

Film, TV, or theatrical adaptations

The book was made into a Japanese animated film, which premiered in 1997. It starred the voices of Yu-ki of the pop group TRF as Elmer Elevator and

Megumi Hayashibara is a Japanese voice actress, singer, lyricist and radio personality from Kita ward in Tokyo and is affiliated with self-founded Woodpark Office. One of the most prominent Japanese voice actresses since the 1990s, Hayashibara is best known for he ...

as Boris the Dragon. In 2011, the book was adapted into an American children's stage musical by Travis Tagart. In 2018,

announced that the book will be adapted into an animated feature film of the same name by Irish animation studio

for November 11, 2022 release.

Nora Twomey Nora Twomey (born 31 October 1971) is an Irish animator, director, screenwriter, producer and voice actress. She is best known as the co-founder of Cartoon Saloon, alongside Tomm Moore and Paul Young, an animation studio and production company, b ...

was announced as the director with

Meg LeFauve Meg LeFauve is an American screenwriter and film producer. Early life LeFauve was raised in Warren, Ohio, and attended Syracuse University. Career LeFauve began her film career as a producer and President of Egg Pictures, Jodie Foster's fi ...

as the film's screenwriter. Netflix announced the cast in April 2022 which included

Jacob Tremblay Jacob Tremblay ( ; born October 5, 2006) is a Canadian actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Canadian Screen Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, a Young Artist Award, and nominations for a Screen Actors Guild Award, tw ...

as Elmer Elevator and

Gaten Matarazzo Gaetano John Matarazzo III (; ; born September 8, 2002) is an American actor. He began his career on the Broadway stage as Benjamin in '' Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' (2011–12) and as Gavroche in ''Les Misérables'' (2014–15). Matara ...

as Boris the dragon alongside

Golshifteh Farahani Rahavard Farahani ( fa, رهاورد فراهانی; born 10 July 1983), known professionally as Golshifteh Farahani (), is an Iranian-French actress. She is known for her performances in ''M for Mother'' (2006), '' Body of Lies'' (2008), ''Abo ...

Dianne Wiest Dianne Evelyn Wiest (; born March 28, 1948) is an American actress. She has won two Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress for 1986’s ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' and 1994’s ''Bullets over Broadway'' (both of which were directed by Woody ...

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...

Chris O'Dowd Christopher O'Dowd (born 9 October 1979) is an Irish actor and comedian. He received wide attention as Roy Trenneman, one of the lead characters in the Channel 4 comedy '' The IT Crowd'', which ran for four series between 2006 and 2010. He has ...

Judy Greer Judith Therese Evans (born July 20, 1975), known professionally as Judy Greer, is an American actress. She is primarily known as a character actress, who has appeared in a wide variety of films. She first rose to prominence in a variety of suppor ...

Alan Cumming Alan Cumming (born 27 January 1965) is a British actor. His London stage appearances include ''Hamlet'', the Maniac in ''Accidental Death of an Anarchist'' (for which he received an Olivier Award), the lead in '' Bent'', The National Theatre o ...

Yara Shahidi Yara Sayeh Shahidi (born February 10, 2000) is an American actress and model. She gained recognition for her starring role as the oldest daughter Zoey Johnson on the sitcom ''Black-ish'' (2014–2022) and its spin-off series ''Grown-ish'' (2018 ...

Jackie Earle Haley Jack Earle Haley (born July 14, 1961) is an American actor and director. His earliest roles included Moocher in ''Breaking Away'' (1979) and Kelly Leak in ''The Bad News Bears'' (1976), ''The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training'' (1977) and ''The ...

Mary Kay Place Mary Kay Place (born September 23, 1947) is an American actress, singer, director, and screenwriter. She is known for portraying Loretta Haggers on the television series ''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'', a role that won her the 1977 Primetime Emmy ...

Leighton Meester Leighton Marissa Meester (; born April 9, 1986) is an American actress, singer, and model. She is best known for her starring role as the devious socialite Blair Waldorf on ''Gossip Girl'' on The CW (2007–2012). She has also appeared in films ...

Adam Brody Adam Jared Brody (born December 15, 1979) is an American actor, writer, musician, and producer. He is known for his breakthrough role as Seth Cohen on the Fox television series ''The O.C.'', which premiered in 2003. Subsequently, Brody appeared ...

Charlyne Yi Charlyne Amanda Yi (born January 4, 1986) is an American actor, comedian, musician, and writer. Their performances include music, magic, games, and often audience participation. Their screenwriting debut, the feature film '' Paper Heart'', wo ...

, with

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

and

Ian McShane Ian David McShane (born 29 September 1942) is an English actor, producer and director. He is known for his television performances, particularly as the title role in the BBC series ''Lovejoy'' (1986–1994), Al Swearengen in '' Deadwood'' (2004 ...

. In 2022, the book was featured as a bedtime story in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

series ''

Westworld ''Westworld'' is an American science fiction- thriller media franchise that began with the 1973 film ''Westworld'', written and directed by Michael Crichton. The film depicts a technologically advanced Wild-West-themed amusement park populat ...

'' Season 4, Episode 1 " The Auguries".

Footnotes

{{Gannett Dragon Series 1948 American novels 1948 children's books American children's novels Novels about dragons Children's fantasy novels Newbery Honor-winning works Novels set on fictional islands Public domain books American novels adapted into plays American adventure novels adapted into films American fantasy novels adapted into films Works adapted into animated films Children's books adapted into films Children's books about dragons Children's books set on islands