New Dragon City

August 22, 2022
Five years after the dragon apocalypse wiped out most of humankind, and two years after his survivalist father’s bunker ran out of food, 12-year-old Noah is eking out a tenuous existence as part of a band of survivors in New York City. When the dragons awake from their winter hibernation a month early, while Noah’s out scavenging for nonperishables, the group relocates from their part-time hotel residence to their subway-tunnel shelter. Noah, however, secretly remains aboveground to search with his dad for Noah’s mother, who has purportedly joined a cult of dragon sympathizers. When a chance Times Square encounter with a young dragon named Asha leaves Noah inexplicably connected to her via a mental bond, the revelation suggests it may be possible for humans and dragons to coexist peacefully, but Noah’s father refuses to back down from his anti-dragon crusade. In a contemporary-feeling metropolitan adventure replete with dragon deniers and fake news, Mancusi (the Dragon Ops series) lightly sketches the society’s day-to-day realities; if the resulting world is unevenly built, it also imbues Noah’s experiences with a sense of awe, making for an entertaining, flashy novel centering family and interspecies friendship. Noah reads as white. Ages 8–12. Agent: Mandy Hubbard, Emerald City Literary Agency.

September 1, 2022
When a young dragon saves Noah's life, he realizes that dragons may not be as monstrous as he was taught. It's April in New York City, and a lot has changed in the years since dragons appeared and society collapsed. The time has come for people to go underground for the summer to avoid the dangerous beasts emerging from hibernation, but Noah's mom has been missing for two months, and his dad isn't going without her. Not wanting to be separated from both his parents, Noah devises a plan to get himself left behind. A chance encounter with a baby dragon named Asha sets a series of events in motion that cascade beyond Noah's control, threatening the safety of everyone--human and dragon. Caught between parents who are as unable to see eye to eye as the humans and dragons, 12-year-old Noah is a sympathetic character with a gentle demeanor and a kind heart. His struggle to balance a desire not to disappoint either of his parents with his own developing ideas about what is right and true will resonate deeply. A nuanced exploration of the ways external influences can change us for better or worse is threaded through this story with a vividly rendered setting and a tense, high-stakes adventure at its center. Noah and his family default to White; there is some racial diversity in the supporting cast. A heartwarming, hopeful dragon-filled journey through family life and the importance of finding common ground. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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October 1, 2022
Grades 4-7 Five years have passed since the dragon apocalypse, when dragons arrived and burned everything in their path. Noah and his parents were among the survivors, taking shelter in the New York City subway and emerging only in the months when dragons hibernate. After his mother disappears, Noah ventures out to search for supplies and spots a dragon, setting off a chain of events that leaves him and his dad alone in pursuit of dragons and his mom. When Noah finds a baby dragon named Asha, he and his father are forced to reconsider their negative preconceptions about these creatures, and since his father won't open his eyes to the truth, Noah must do all he can to save Asha and the dragons. This fast-paced adventure provides an inventive take on the postapocalyptic novel, mixing the magic of dragons into a survival story set in New York City. Filled with vibrant characters and told from the perspectives of Noah and Asha, New Dragon City shows that things are not always what they seem.

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