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Michael Rains was often commended by teachers for creative writing while growing up, even to having an award category created for him at a school graduation.
"When drawing, I can never make a straight line," he says. "I guess I write the same way."
"Wendell and the Dragon's Heart" was his first completed book, although he has finished other stories since then, such as "The House On the Corner" as well as "Bird Catching: The Memoirs of Nobody".
Interestingly, Michael has never received serious training in creative writing (or non-serious training) but one day he decided to try and write a whole book because it seemed like an exciting idea at the time, and also because he had no idea what he was getting into.
If he found three wishes, one would be to see his favorite white cat that ran off.
Reviewed by Joy Hannabass for Readers' Favorite
Wendell is an orphan who wanders around the city stealing what he can, especially food to survive. Sometimes he would pick up a job, including keeping crows out of the fields for one of the residents. This only lasted a few days, but Wendell did get pretty good at throwing stones at the crows, and he made enough money for a few days food.
Wendell came upon many interesting things as he strolled the streets of the city, including a get together at the center of the square with people cheering and having a good time. Having no family of his own, Wendell enjoyed being around the families, the food and the songs they were singing. This was one of the good times he had. As the days went on and he continued to stroll through the city streets, he came upon an old house that a friend of his father lived in. In this house he found paintings; one was a girl with red hair and a nice blue dress. The old man told Wendell she was Karen of the Royal family. Later he found out that Karen had been taken from the Royal Gardens. This sent Wendell on a hunt to find Karen. Join Wendell as he continues his interesting and sometimes dangerous journey to find the Royal daughter.
Although this is not the genre of books I usually read, I found this story interesting. Wendell's character was unique and likeable, one you felt sorry for yet admired. His many adventures to survive keeps you interested because you want to find out what is going to happen next in his life. His determination to find Karen was heartwarming as well. This is a great book that any preteen would enjoy, and would be great for any library.
