Saturday, November 14, 2009, one of my favorite fantasy authors, James A. Owen, is having a book signing at Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, http://www.changinghands.com/. The flu was visiting my home the day his new book Shadow Dragons was released so my purchased copy is waiting at the store for me to claim it; so, I listened to it on audio book from Audible first. While the narrator, James Langton, does a superb job as he did with the other three novels in the Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica; I can’t wait to see the imaginative illustrations. For anyone who has not read his previous novels James Owen is an artist and does his own illustrations so you know that is actually how the author envisioned the scene or character. I really enjoyed The Shadow Dragons. The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica can be enjoyed on more than one level. They are great stories on the surface but deeper he has referenced fiction throughout history to present day and molded the plots, themes, fictional characters; and, even turned the actual authors into characters, in his own epic. When I read these books I always want to look up works and authors referenced with whom I am less familiar. I don’t want to spoil the plot of this book or the series for anyone that hasn’t read them so I won’t summarize the story. I am looking forward to the event Saturday.

Here is what my research I uncovered:


Dragon eggs once laid must gestate for a minimum period, (Dragons refuse to disclose the exact time due to the movement for dragon annihilation.) but then the egg can go into a kind of stasis—if it were hatched you would call it hibernation—until it is time to hatch. There does not appear to be a time limit for stasis but an egg must be thoroughly bathed in fire either before or after stasis to hatch. An unfired egg will never hatch. The fire can be and most often is dragon fire, but can come from volcano heat, bon fire, or an artificial source. At the proper time for hatching a dragonling will chip away at the shell, like a chick, until it eventually emerges from the hole. While dragon eggs are harder than sea shells they are still vulnerable to external cracking like any egg. No matter the initiation, once cracked the egg must completely hatch or the dragonet inside will die. This is how many dragonets were slaughtered in Arthurian times, but that is another topic all together. With dragon numbers scarce and trust between human and dragon often compromised by humans it is not surprising that dragons are very secretive. As I learn more I will report my findings. I have been learning about dragon writing and expect to recount what I am learning soon.

Storybook Wishes is for adventurers, dreamers and people that still wish on stars. People that explore the Milky Way and beyond. People that transport paper doll princesses to a fairytale castles with wands or pixie dust; or ride the waves and captain pirate ships with cardboard sabers. People that concoct invisibility potions in their kitchens. People that transform into humming birds, or make friends with dragons and fly on their backs; as well as, people that want such experiences and are interested in discussing such topics. Welcome.