Yes, it's a children's book. It's well illustrated and just fabulous in terms of introducing kids to a wide variety of monsters and fantastic creatures I'd never encountered much before I discovered D&D.

As a handy reference for writers, it's simply a heavily illustrated book for terms of venery. Its subtitle is "Collective Nouns for Magical Beasts" and the only lists I've found better than this book come from Ed Greenwood and his 30 years-worth of Forgotten Realms works. ( )

Have you ever rushed to Google to find out what a group of porcupines should be referred to as? Now, you will have to look no further for those answers (for fantasy beings, at least.) In this bestiary, you can find out that a group of sphinx is referred to as a riddle and collection of kracken is known as a continent. Mythical beings from all over the world are featured so readers can be exposed to mythical creatures from other parts of the world that they may not be familiar with.

The dreamy and ethereal mixed media illustrations perfectly complement the mythical beasts and whimsical environments. The vibrant pictures will assuredly capture readers’ attentions and detail-oriented readers will appreciate the detailed illustrations that seem to unveil something new with every glance of the eye.

The helpful glossary at the conclusion informs readers of the origins and pertinent details of each “beast” included, so if a reader doesn’t know what a chi-lin or a kirin is, they can easily flip to the back to find out more about the beasts. Although the book itself has sparse text, the glossary provides much more text for readers who like a challenge. As such, this book would suit a wide range of ages and reading levels. Although this bestiary won’t tell you what a group of porcupines is called (a prickle, for the curious), it will most likely satisfy readers’ imaginations. Glossary. Recommended. Grades 1-5. ( )

A Dignity of Dragons is like a thesaursas of nouns for magical beasts. The illustrations are beautiful and interesting. I would use this book in writing to show how a writier could use different words to replace plain nouns. It also has a nice collection of adjectives. Grades 2 - 8. ( )

Beautiful ethereal computer graphics; highly detailed images, something new to look at every time you read it. Not a story, but a series of collective nouns for mythical creatures, includes a description and origin of all creatures in the back. 2nd grade maybe. ( )