Every year, the villagers of Protectorate sacrifice a baby girl to a witch to keep her away from the village. What they don’t know is the witch is kind and gentle, raising the abandoned babies with her Perfectly Tiny Dragon. When she accidentally feeds one baby moonlight (instead of starlight), the baby develops magic powers beyond comprehension.

This was one of my favorite books growing up, and your young reader will probably love it, too! Shy Princess Addie has always hidden behind her brave sister, Princess Meryl. But when Meryl becomes sick with an uncureable plague, Addie will do anything to help her – including slaying a dragon.

Before the enormously popular animated movie, Cressida Cowell introduced us to Hiccup, Toothless, Astrid, and more! Hiccup is the shy and nervous son of a Viking chief, determined to make his father proud by catching and training a dragon. Only, as it turns out, his village has seriously misunderstood their scaly neighbors.

Creel’s aunt has a dangerous plan to get their family out of poverty: sacrifice Creel to a dragon so a chivalrous knight comes along and marries her, to the financial benefit of them all. But instead of languishing in captivity, Creel and the dragon become friends. When the dragon gives her a pair of beautiful slippers, Creel realizes they could change the fate of her kingdom.

A lonely boy and a lonely dragon unite for a better life in this beautiful series from a modern master of children’s literature. Ben (the boy) and Firedrake (the dragon) set off on a quest to find a mythical island where dragons can live in peace. Along the way they face many adventures – including someone determined to stop them.

This book is a bit more heavy than many middle-grade books, but it can be a great buddy read for adults to talk through events in the book with their kids. David discovers magical dragon figurines that come to life around the right person! His dragon, Gadzooks, can see the future, with consequences for both of them.

While dragons don’t dominate this classic middle-grade fantasy series, they contribute to a richly-built world sure to captivate readers of all ages. Ged is now a powerful sorcerer – but once, he was a young, reckless boy called Sparrowhawk. This sweeping series follows Ged through the magical misadventures of growing up.

Young Minli grew up on her father’s stories of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man on the Moon, who has all the answers. Feeling frustrated with her impoverished life, Minli sets off to find the Old Man on the Moon, with the assistance of a dragon she befriends on the way. Lin beautifully blends gorgeous illustrations with Chinese folklore in one of the greatest works of children’s fantasy, ever.

Though it’s technically middle grade, I know many adults who have enjoyed this cozy fantasy graphic novel. After a young woman named Greta stumbles on a tea dragon, she enters the shrinking world of caring for these small, gentle creatures. It’s a story full of kind characters and blissful escapism.

Best known for the blockbuster Percy Jackson series, Rick Riordan brought his vivid imagination to middle grade in this epic series. Thinking themselves ordinary kids, Jason, Piper and Leo discover they’re actually demigods. Even more, it turns out only they can rescue Piper’s father – a missing god.

If you’ve spent 0.5 seconds in a library, you knew it was coming: the first book in the Wings of Fire series! This wildly popular series follow 5 young dragon friends raised under a secret prophecy. But the weight of the prophecy is a lot for a young dragon to bear, and the dragons break free of the only life they’ve known to hold on to what they love – each other.

Don’t let the length of the title fool you – this book packs a ton of action in a relatively small package! Preteen girl September lives a normal (if lonely) life in Omaha, Nebraska. Until one day, the wind (in the form of a man) shows up at her house and whisks her away to Fairyland. Along the way, September makes friends with a book-loving dragon.

Though not as well known in the US, this series has captivated Australian readers since its publication in 2003. Orphaned and illiterate, Ping is the apprentice to the dragon keeper, whose dereliction of duty means only one dragon remains. The dragon, Danzi, convinced Ping to flee with him to freedom – and discover her power along the way.

Princess Cimorene is tired of her life under the rule of her father – a very strict and old-fashioned king. Her strong-willed nature means they often butt heads. So one day, she sets out to live with the one creature she believes will understand her – the dragon Kazul.

The Library is a mysterious, multi-dimensional organization that collects rare and dangerous books for the good of the world. When they send one of their top spies, Irene, to retrieve a book in London, she and her assistant arrive to a shocking discovery: the book has already been stolen. Full of magic and intrigue, you can’t put down this fast-paced series.

In Jennifer’s world, magic has gone from mysterious and all-powerful to mundane and weak. It’s clear magic is running out, but no one knows why. When a prophecy emerges predicting a powerful dragonslayer will emerge to kill the last dragon, will it revive the dying magic? Fforde’s charming writing springs off of every page in this witty, wry series.

Full of palace intrigue and eastern dragon lore, Goodman created a rich, immersive world with this duology. 12-year-old Eon has studied Dragon Magic for years in the hopes of becoming an apprentice to a dragon. But Eon has a secret: he is actually Eona, and girls are forbidden from learning dragon magic. As her secrets unravel, they threaten more than Eona’s future.

Rachel Hartman created a totally unique spin on dragon lore with this duology. In Goredd, dragons have highly mathematical minds, and shift into humans to assist society with science, math, and more. But despite this, tensions are high between both factions. When a royal is murdered right before their peace treaty is meant for renewal, a young musician named Seraphina becomes wrapped up in the chaos.

Most people do not put “Stephen King” and “Young Adult” together, but the reigning horror writer does in fact write young adult and fantasy! Imbued with his trademark darkness, this book follows the two heirs of a king whose struggle for power and recognition delves deep into dark magic. It asks, how far will someone go for power?

Auron is a grey dragon – unique, rare, and totally defenseless. But when the rest of his broodmates are mercilessly killed, it’s up to Auron to avenge their deaths and restore dragonkind. This series is utterly unique in that the protagonist is a young dragon. Auron’s quest to save his kin will nevertheless resonate with anyone who’s felt not-quite-good-enough.

Despite her vaulted position as Kiata’s only princess, Shiori has a secret: her blood runs full of forbidden magic. Seizing the opportunity to usurp her, Shiori’s stepmother turns her 6 brothers into cranes, condemning them to die if Shiori speaks. To rescue her brothers, Shiori must align with all manner of magical folk (including a shifty dragon).

In the Science Fiction world, Anne McCaffrey is a true giant of the genre, as the first woman to win both a Hugo and a Nebula award. Dragonflight kicks off her seminal series – the Dragonriders of Pern. This book follows orphan Lessa, bent on avenging her parents murder. When a man named F’lar offers her a chance to bond with a rare Golden Dragon, Lessa sees an opportunity to fulfill her destiny.

Sybel has led a wild life, raised among a magical menagerie on the top of a mountain. For all of her 16 years, the affairs of humans have mattered little to her. But when a baby appears on her mountaintop, Sybel assumes responsibility for its well-being, stirring new emotions Sybel didn’t even know she had.

Holt Cook generally keeps his head down, serving his duty as a dishwasher for the Order Hall of Crag. Until he discovers a dragon egg doomed for immolation because the baby dragon within is blind. Amidst this, a deadly Scourge of undead is terrifying the land. It may be up to Holt – and his blind dragon – to stop the Scourge once and for all.

The first book in the wildly popular Inheritance Cycle, Eragon has kept readers of all ages in its thrall for nearly 25 years. When a young boy discovers a beautiful blue stone in the forest, he hopes it’ll bring some much-needed prosperity to his family’s farm. But the stone hatches into a fledgling dragon, and thrusts Eragon into ranks of the legendary dragon riders.

In this world, dragons live a dangerous existence. Trapped, enclosed, and stifled, dragons are trained to fight in pits rather than living out their days as magnificent creatures. For 15-year-old Jakkin, training dragons might be his only path to freedom. But the more he gets to know these amazing beasts, the more he feels he has to find a way to free them – whatever the cost.