How to Train Your Dragon (novel series) facts for kids

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How to Train Your Dragon
Cover of the first edition of How to Train Your Dragon
1. How to Train Your Dragon 2. How to Be a Pirate 3. How to Speak Dragonese 4. How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse 5. How to Twist a Dragon's Tale 6. A Hero's Guide to Deadly Dragons 7. How to Ride a Dragon's Storm 8. How to Break a Dragon's Heart 9. How to Steal a Dragon's Sword 10. How to Seize a Dragon's Jewel 11. How to Betray a Dragon's Hero 12. How to Fight a Dragon's Fury
Author	Cressida Cowell
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre	Fantasy, young adult fiction, coming of age
Publisher	Hodder Children's Books (UK) Little, Brown and Company (US)
Published	2003–2015
Media type	Print (hardback & paperback) Audiobook

How to Train Your Dragon is a popular series of twelve books for children. They were written by British author Cressida Cowell. The stories take place in a make-believe Viking world. They follow the adventures of a young boy named Hiccup. He faces many challenges to become a true hero.

The books were first published in the UK by Hodder Children's Books. In the US, Little, Brown and Company published them. The first book came out in 2003, and the last one in 2015. By 2015, over seven million copies of the series had been sold worldwide.

These books also inspired a big franchise. This includes three popular films, several short stories, and an animated TV show. All of these were made by DreamWorks Animation.

Exploring the Book Series

Cressida Cowell wrote twelve full novels about Hiccup Horrendous Haddock The Third. The first book was released in 2003, and the last in 2015. All the main books have titles that sound like an instruction guide.

Meet the Characters

The How to Train Your Dragon books are full of memorable characters. Here are some of the most important ones:

Main Characters

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock The Third: He is the main hero of the books. Everyone thought he was weak and useless, even his own father. But Hiccup was very smart and thought things through. He was one of the few people who could understand and speak Dragonese, the language of dragons. Hiccup also became a great sword fighter and a legendary Viking hero.
Toothless: This is Hiccup's loyal hunting-dragon. He appears in every book. Toothless looks like a common green dragon. But he is actually a rare and powerful Seadragonus Giganticus Maximus. He is one of the King's Lost Things.
Fishlegs: Hiccup's best friend. He is allergic to reptiles and has asthma. Fishlegs is often seen as a bit of a wimp. But he can be very clever when needed. He also loves poetry and dreams of becoming a bard.
Camicazi: A brave and chatty girl from the Bog-Burglars tribe. She is a skilled sword fighter and excellent at escaping and stealing. Camicazi often acts without thinking, which balances Hiccup's careful nature.
Stoick the Vast: Hiccup's father and the strong leader of the Hairy Hooligans tribe. He is very strong but not as smart as Hiccup. He owns several dragons throughout the series.
Snotface Snotlout: Hiccup's cousin. He often bullies Hiccup and Fishlegs. Snotlout is good at sports and being rude. His dragon is a fiery Monstrous Nightmare named Fireworm.
Valhallarama: Hiccup's mother. She is often away on important quests. She plays a key role in later books, helping Hiccup become King of the Wilderwest.
Gobber The Belch: The Viking in charge of training young Vikings. He is a tough but loyal teacher. In later books, he becomes a trusted follower of Hiccup.

Other Important Characters

Alvin the Treacherous: Hiccup's main enemy. He is a skilled sword fighter but often loses body parts in his battles with Hiccup. Alvin is also Fishlegs's father.
Excellinor: Alvin's evil witch mother. She is very powerful and wants Hiccup's special sword.
Old Wrinkly: Hiccup's wise grandfather and the tribe's doctor and soothsayer. He gives Hiccup important advice.
Furious: A powerful Seadragonus Giganticus Maximus. He leads the Dragon Rebellion against humans. He becomes Hiccup's blood brother, helping bring peace between Vikings and dragons.

Adventures in the Books

The How to Train Your Dragon series follows Hiccup's journey from a small, overlooked Viking to a great hero. Each book presents a new challenge and helps Hiccup grow.

How to Train Your Dragon (2003)

In the first book, Hiccup must catch and train a dragon as a Viking tradition. He catches a tiny, disobedient dragon he names Toothless. The official dragon training book is useless, so Hiccup tries his own methods. During a big storm, huge Sea Dragons attack Berk Island. Hiccup and Toothless bravely fight the giant Green Death dragon. They save their village and become heroes.

How to Be A Pirate (2004)

Hiccup finds a coffin belonging to his famous pirate ancestor, Grimbeard the Ghastly. Inside is Alvin the Treacherous, who pretends to be a poor farmer. Alvin tricks the Vikings into searching for Grimbeard's treasure on the dangerous Isle of Skullions. Hiccup discovers the real treasure is hidden in an underwater cave. He also learns he is left-handed and a natural sword fighter. Alvin is defeated by a monstrous octopus guarding the treasure.

How to Speak Dragonese (2005)

Hiccup and Fishlegs get lost at sea and accidentally board a Roman ship. Fishlegs is captured. Hiccup learns of a Roman plan to make Viking tribes fight each other. He escapes with Fishlegs and meets Camicazi, a fierce Bog-Burglar warrior. They are all imprisoned by Alvin, who is working with the Romans. Hiccup, with the help of a tiny Nanodragon king, plans a daring escape from a gladiatorial arena.

How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse (2006)

Fishlegs gets sick, and Old Wrinkly thinks he has a rare disease called Vorpentitis. The only cure is a special vegetable (a potato) from a faraway land called America. Hiccup, Camicazi, and Toothless go on a dangerous quest to the Hysteric tribe's territory to find it. They face Norbert the Nutjob, the crazy Hysteric chief. Hiccup eventually finds the potato, but it turns out Fishlegs just had a cold! Hiccup then gets Vorpentitis himself, but is cured by the potato.

How to Twist a Dragon's Tale (2007)

Giant fire dragons called Exterminators attack. Hiccup is saved by Humungously Hotshot, a famous hero. Hotshot is tricked by Alvin the Treacherous into believing Hiccup is evil. Hiccup discovers that Hotshot was in love with his mother, Valhallarama, years ago. They travel to Lava-Lout Island to stop a volcano from erupting. Hiccup puts a special stone into the volcano, which hatches into a new fire dragon that defeats the Exterminators.

A Hero's Guide To Deadly Dragons (2007)

This book is about Hiccup's birthday. He gets lost in a huge library and faces dangerous Driller Dragons. Hiccup's father, Stoick, is angry about Hiccup's dragon research. Hiccup, Camicazi, and Fishlegs go to the Meathead Library to find a lost book. They encounter the Hairy Scary Librarian and more dragons. Hiccup finds a special book written by his ancestor, which helps him save the day.

How to Ride a Dragon's Storm (2008)

Hiccup and his friends participate in a swimming race. They are captured by Norbert the Nutjob. On Norbert's ship, Hiccup discovers enslaved Northern Wanderers. He helps them escape from the dangerous Polar-serpent land. A huge Leviathorgan attacks the ship during a storm. Hiccup uses a special machine to fight it. He eventually returns to Berk, but is marked as a slave.

How to Break a Dragon's Heart (2009)

The Hooligans are shipwrecked on a haunted beach. They find a lost Hooligan throne. Hiccup pretends to be the one who sent love letters to the Uglithug chief's daughter, Tantrum. He must complete an "Impossible Task" to get honey from the dangerous Island of Berserk. Hiccup and Fishlegs are captured by the Berserks. Hiccup meets Alvin again and a powerful witch. He also encounters Furious, a giant dragon who promises to return and destroy humans.

How to Steal a Dragon's Sword (2011)

Dragons are rebelling, led by Furious. Hiccup and other young Vikings go to a sword-fighting school. Excellinor, Alvin's witch mother, is there. She says the sword competition will decide the next king. Hiccup has many of the items needed to be king, except the crown and Dragon Jewel. He finds the crown and an ancient dragon named Wodensfang. Hiccup wins the competition, but his slavemark is revealed, making him an outcast. Alvin becomes king and declares war on dragons.

How to Seize a Dragon's Jewel (2012)

Hiccup is now in exile, hunted by both humans and dragons. He tries to find the Dragon Jewel, which is mankind's only hope. He meets his mother, Valhallarama, and his father, Stoick, who is now a slave. Hiccup also meets a triple-headed dragon who was supposed to protect Fishlegs as a baby. Hiccup finds the Dragon Jewel, but Alvin steals it. Valhallarama rallies the slaves to join Hiccup.

How to Betray a Dragon's Hero (2013)

Hiccup and his companions try to get the King's Lost Things back. They find Snotlout, who is in trouble with the Dragon Rebellion. Alvin's Spydragons kidnap Camicazi. Snotlout helps Hiccup escape by switching clothes. Snotlout is killed, sacrificing himself for Hiccup. Everyone thinks Hiccup is dead, but he survives, though unconscious.

How to Fight a Dragon's Fury (2015)

Hiccup wakes up with no memory. He is attacked by dragons and captured by the Dragon Guardians. He regains his memory and is crowned king. Hiccup prepares to fight Furious. He learns the Dragon Jewel contains a virus that can wipe out dragons, but his is fake. Hiccup finds the real Dragon Jewel in Fishlegs's necklace. He makes a peace treaty with Furious. Alvin and the Witch attack, breaking the peace. Alvin is revealed to be Fishlegs's father and is defeated. The Witch attacks Hiccup, but Furious saves him, getting poisoned. Furious dies, and peace is finally made between humans and dragons. Hiccup builds a new kingdom where humans and dragons live together.

Films and Their Differences

DreamWorks Animation made a computer-animated film called How to Train Your Dragon. It came out on March 26, 2010. The film was a huge success and led to two sequels: How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019).

How the Films Differ from the Books

The movies are very different from the first book. In the books, Vikings already train dragons for combat. In the films, Vikings fight dragons fiercely until Hiccup shows them how to train them.

Toothless is also very different. In the books, he is a tiny, common, and disobedient dragon. In the films, he is a rare, powerful, and intelligent Night Fury. This change was made to add more danger to Hiccup's training.

A main character in the films, Astrid, does not appear in the books. She is a strong Viking girl and Hiccup's friend. In the books, Camicazi is a similar character.

Fishlegs is Hiccup's best friend in the books. He is skinny, often scared, and allergic to reptiles. In the films, he is bigger, very smart about dragons, and excited by them.

Snotlout is a bully to Hiccup in the books. In the films, he is Hiccup's friend, though still rude and competitive. In the books, Snotlout's dragon is Fireworm. In the films, his dragon is Hookfang.

The final film ends with dragons going into hiding. This happens when Hiccup is an adult, not at the end of his life as in the books. The dragons go to a secret place called the 'Hidden World'. The film ends with Hiccup and Astrid showing their children the dragons, hoping humans will learn to get along.

Audio Adventures

All twelve How to Train Your Dragon novels are available as audiobooks. Actor David Tennant narrates them. He also voices Spitelout, Snotlout's father, in the films and TV show.

There are also German audiobooks available. Cressida Cowell herself narrated the audiobook for How to be a Viking in 2014.

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