Few children find themselves dining with flame-sneezing dragons. No Dragons for Tea (Kids Can, $14.95) by Jean Pendziwol presents a frightening situation in a way that is non-threatening but still conveys fire-safety and evacuation rules. A little girl smacks her red wagon into a dragon, but he's "so polite"; she asks him to play, and then on to tea. Following the rhyming pair's antics, we learn to drop down, get out fast, stay out, call for help and meet at a planned meeting spot. Lively, coloured pencil illustrations by Paris-born Vancouverite Martine Gourbault underscore the rules with easy charm. 1-55074-569-7

[BCBW AUTUMN 1999]