The Dragons of Ordinary Farm

This begins with the tried-and-true device of having two siblings shunted off to spend a summer with an odd, distant relative who is up to all manner of mysterious goings-on but flies off the handle when the kids naturally get a little curious. Tyler and Lucinda discover that their great-uncle Gideon is raising dragons, griffins, unicorns, and stablefuls of other mythical beasties. Where did they come from, and how are they kept a secret? The first half of the story is belabored by loads of heavy description as the authors, the husband-and-wife team of Williams (a noted adult fantasist) and Beale, struggle to whip up enough personality to spread across the considerably large cast. But the pace picks up considerably when the kids set out for a bit of time travel and a journey into an alternate reality, both of which are teasingly quick jaunts away from the farm. Patient readers will be rewarded with an exciting conclusion and many tantalizing seeds planted for future summers. Grades 4-7.