'Bestseller Graeme Base offers a new edition of the book that helped start the dragon craze

Includes newly discovered American dragons!

Fans of Graeme Base—and dragon lovers—will be thrilled to discover this brand-new edition of the classic book of serpentology, The Discovery of Dragons, first published in 1996. Now it includes a special section on \"New World\" dragons, before now unknown.

Was Bjorn of Bromme one of the greatest explorers of the Viking Age or just a simple-minded, lice-infested barbarian with a passion for beach volleyball? Could Soong Mei Ying, a thirteenth-century teenager, really have discovered the Asiatic dragons or did she just need a good excuse to leave home? Did Dr. E. F. Liebermann perish after discovering the Common Green Draak, also known as the \"Awful Gurgler,\" or was he suffering from a severe bout of jungle madness? And does Francisco de Nuevo still live today, working as an extra on Canadian television, after discovering the secret of eternal youth in 1532?

The answers to these questions and more will not be found within the pages of this book—but there are a lot of great big dragons

\"All my life I have been pursued by dragons. These fearsome beasts have been a constant source of inspiration and aggravation ever since I was a kid in school.\" —Graeme Base

\"Astute readers will note that there have been absolutely no changes made to the original text of the book. This is due to the fact that it was completely perfect in every way. However, those same readers will be delighted and amazed by the addition of a brand-new chapter introducing a previously uncatalogued class of Dragons: the New World Dragons.

\"It is important to note that the failure to include these exceptionally interesting and fully authenticated Dragons in the first edition of the book was the result of shoddy editorial work by persons unnamed and was in no way the fault of the author who knew all along that there were lots of other Dragons out there but did not want to cause a fuss at Snoisses and Bielttg Inc. by pointing out the error.\" —Prof. Rowland W. Greasebeam, B.Sc. (Serp.), F.R.Aud. (Melb.), Editor, Melbourne

Praise for The Discovery of Dragons

\"Stunning paintings, witty letters, maps, and a running cartoon strip are sure to delight.\" —Booklist

\"Stunning illustrations of the fiery beasts.\"—The Boston Herald

\"Illustrations showcase the kind of intricate detail for which Base is so well known . . . There\'s much to enjoy here, and much to propel readers to seek out every last drop.\" —Publishers Weekly'

In this revised and expanded edition of Bases classic, dragons from around the world are described and catalogued by a group of eccentric Victorian scientists. Fun facts about dragons fill the pages of this humorous picture book. Full color.

A Victorian scientist, R.W. Greasebeam, presents the original correspondence of early explorers who encountered some of the world's most fearsome dragons. Base's fans will be delighted by his humorous stories and intricate renderings of these colorful creatures.

'Graeme Base is one of the world\'s leading creators of picture books, most recently of the New York Times Bestsellers Uno\'s Garden and Jungle Drums. His alphabet book, Animalia, received international acclaim when it was first published in 1986 and has sold more than two million copies. Other perennial favorites by Graeme include The Eleventh Hour, My Grandma Lived in Gooligulch, The Sign of the Seahorse, The Discovery of Dragons, The Worst Band in the Universe, and The Water Hole. In 2003, he wrote his first novel for young readers, TruckDogs. Graeme lives in Melbourne, Australia, with his artist wife, Robyn, and three wild and wonderful creatures of their own, James, Kate, and William.'