Dragon for Dinner

James has always pictured himself as a newspaper reporter, so when his sixth-grade English teacher announces the Mayor's writing contest, he assumes the prize is his. The confidence fades the moment he faces a blank page, where no ideas will come. His elderly neighbor, Stan, arrives with a crate of worn-out books and insists they will fix James's writing slump. Curious and doubtful, James opens the first volume, and a small blue dragon materializes in his bedroom.

The dragon, who goes by Blue, is as bouncy and eager as a six-week-old puppy. He has a task of his own and plans to stay until he has helped James solve a problem. His presence gets livelier still when the scent of his sister's dinner drifts upstairs, and the household's evening takes an unexpected turn.

The story asks whether Blue can help James work out the secret behind Stan's books, or whether the dragon's appetite will simply wreck dinner for the whole family.