The discussions questions are thoughtful and true to the thinking I used in writing the story. For WondLa, you get questions like this:

What elements make up a family? Does color, size, or shape make a difference in these elements? Is it possible for a robot to be a family member?

and:

Lewis and Clark, John Audubon, and Charles Darwin are all greatly admired people who captured “new” creatures, observed them, killed them, and dissected them all in an attempt to understand them. Are Zin, Besteel, Queen Ojo, and the taxidermist any different from these men?

For Kenny, you also get discussion questions as well as cool activities like:

You can download the pdf file by clicking here.

Also, I’ll add it to the WondLa Book Page, where the other book-related activities reside. In particular, the Spiderwick Activity Pages are fun. Where else are you gonna find the recipe for Faerie Porridge?

Also, I’ve added a blog category “For Teachers” and have tagged a few older posts that I thought would be relevant to activities and book study on the class and library. Enjoy!

Retailing for a mere $7, here are seven reasons why you may enjoy this story.

1. Lot’s o’ art. I created over 50 pencil drawings of Kenny and company for your viewing pleasure. From quiet, reflective moments like this:

…to awesome scenes like this:

2. Dragons rule. If you haven’t figured it out by now, there is a dragon in this book. A big blue one who loves Shakespeare and eating.

3. Hogsqueal makes a cameo. Don’t believe me? Turn to page 81.

4. Did I mention it was a New York Times Bestseller? That still thrills me.

5. Sneak a read at The Search for WondLa. We put chapter 1 in there for your additional reading pleasure.

6. Ever read Kenneth Grahame’s The Reluctant Dragon? This is a big ol’ valentine to that childhood favorite of mine.

7. What else can you get for $7? Two frappuccinos? A 12-pak of Charmin? A couple of gallons of gas?

I hope you enjoy this story of friendship and family as much as I did creating it. It still holds a warm place in my heart (next to Ted, of course).

Here’s our beloved friend Rovender Kitt from The Search for WondLa.  Look’s like he’s ready to travel…

Check out this rendition of Grahame, the brainy dragon from Kenny & the Dragon.  Is he reading one of your books Elly?

Elly mentioned that she chose to be Jared Grace from The Spiderwick Chronicles for her school’s “Book Character Dress-up Day.” I wanna come!

Knock out drawing of Knocker Elly.  Definitely would NOT mess with this guy….

Keep up the hard work Elly, at this rate I’m certain you’ll succeed with your creative talents.  Keep drawing, keep dreaming!

Nice work on Kenny’s penny-farthing, that thing is fun to draw, isn’t it? You are quite the budding artist, Isabella! Keep drawing, keep dreaming…

I have some favorites, of course, such as make-your-own “Ted’s Birthday Hat” (where you have to write the name of your imaginary friend on it).

(click image for a hi-res file)

…and some holiday images, which I created specifically for crafting flat ornaments to decorate your home, presents or Christmas tree. (In fact,  I should create some new images this year…perhaps Kenny, Grahame and company?)

(click image for a hi-res file)

…there is even a “Color-n-Make” set of puppets from The Spider & The Fly where you can create jointed paper dolls of Mr. Spider, Ms. Fly and the ghost bugs!

(click image for a hi-res file)

…and, since there was no appropriate place for these, here is a set of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons player-character sheets designed and decorated by yours truly for use on your next adventure (click for that hi-res image). Have fun!

The Prix Chronos is an inter-generational book award with the ambition to encourage people to read and to bring together generations: children at the age of 10 to 12 and elderly people together read and review five nominated books. All readers, both young and old, can cast their votes.

One of the nomination criteria is: the relation between these two generations must be a main topic of the book. Or, in this case, the relationship between a dragon and a rabbit.

Since I could not be present, (I have to finish WondLa 2 at some point), I wrote up a thank you letter that I thought you might enjoy:

Hello Dear Readers,

First off, let me apologize for not being here in person to receive this honor. I tried, I truly did. But apparently you can’t bring a full-grown dragon on the plane, even if said dragon purchased their own first class round-trip ticket.

A rabbit? Perhaps. But a dragon? Not gonna happen.

If I were present, I would likely have let this dragon, Grahame, give the acceptance speech. He’s much more eloquent and articulate than I. Oh, he would have begun with kind words about your beautiful country and awe-inspiring landscape, but honestly he would have been present only for the food. You know how dragons are.

He would have then continued on about how this award would not have been possible if it were not for him and his endless wisdom and wit. If there were no dragon in this book, then it would have simply been a story about a bunch of angry bunnies, and who wants to read about that?

Finally I would come up and join Grahame and remind him that his story would not exist were it not for Kenneth Grahame’s beloved tale, “The Reluctant Dragon” originally published in the book, “Dream Days”. I would wax on about how much I adored this old classic and wondered if I could create a new take on it. I would recount how worried I was that children and adults would not like my new version however earnest it may have been. Grahame would chuckle and say, “of course people will like it. It has a dragon in it. And a classy one at that.”

“Yes,” I would agree. “Everyone enjoys a story with dragons, no matter what age they are.”

I know this because there were certain books that I loved as a child that my mom enjoyed reading as well. As a parent I now realize a good book can bridge a generational gap with the flip of a page.

When I was young, sharing a book with my mom and then discussing it afterward was one of my favorite things to do. These conversations often led to what else was going on our lives and it still continues to this day.

In our age of communication chatter, its comforting to know that a simple book can open up real dialogue between the young and the old. I continually strive to craft stories for children of all ages and this award acknowledges my mission and inspires me to continue on my creative journey.

Thank you readers of Switzerland and Prix Chronos for this fantastic award. I share this honor with my translator, Anne Brauner. Thank you to my German publisher, Random House, and my US publisher, Simon & Schuster, for making my stories available the world over. I promise I’ll visit Lucerne soon and I’ll be sure to bring my dragon.

The sculpture was created by one of her gifted students, Ashley, and was done as a visual for her Book Share project.

“…Ashley’s Dragon has inspired others in our class to read “Kenny and the Dragon”. Ashley’s Dragon is currently on display in our Media Center.”

How cool is that?

I’ve been fortunate enough to have Kenny nominated for several state book awards including Florida’s Sunshine State Young Readers Award. What I like about state book awards is that students are encouraged to read independently based on individual interests rather than for assignments. Discovering a favorite story genre at a young age is big step in evolving into a passionate reader.

Thanks for sharing this with me, Beth, and please tell Ashley that Grahame said, “Nice sculpting young bantling.”

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving weekend surrounded by family and loved ones. I enjoyed some much-needed time off from my whirlwind WondLa tour. Thanks again to all of you who came out to see me at the various events. You keep me going.

I feel so fortunate that I’ve wanted to give back and become involved with a charity that benefits children. Thankfully, I’ve found my place with the Starlight Children’s Foundation. The people involved in this amazing organization are kind, generous spirits and I couldn’t be more humbled by their company. As you may recall, the WondLa kickoff event we did in New York City (with Uma Thurman) raised money for Starlight as does a current live auction where I am releasing one of my personal favorites.

Here is the description:

Own this original piece of artwork from Tony DiTerlizzi, creator of The Spiderwick Chronicles & The Spider and the Fly, including a complete set of autographed books!

Tony DiTerlizzi, the #1 New York Times bestselling children’s book author and illustrator, celebrated a milestone in his career in 2006 with the production of this personal painting titled “Imagine”. This 17×14” watercolor and ink illustration was reproduced as a limited edition giclee print that was given to friends and family for the holidays and contains characters from DiTerlizzi’s books including The Spiderwick Chronicles, as well as the Caldecott Honor award winning The Spider and the Fly.

This lot also includes a signed collection of Tony’s books, as well as a signed Artist’s-proof giclee print recreated from the original artwork.

This is a great opportunity to own a piece from my personal collection that I have been holding onto for years. I don’t let much of my original book art go these days, so this is a chance to get a bunch of my characters in one unique image…and its for a great cause.

Check out the auction here. And, hey, it ends right before the holidays – what a great gift idea!