St. George and the Dragon

My copy of this book is now covered in taco salad.This may not sound like a compliment, but believe me, it is. I’m not a particularly tidy eater, nor am I very good at eating and reading simultaneously, so when mealtimes roll around I often have to put my books away. But in the case of 'St. George and the Dragon,' I found that I was unable to do so. Hence the taco salad.A soldier in the Roman army, Marcellus thinks he has his life figured out. He’s climbing the ladder of success, one promotion at a time, and now he’s getting married to a girl he actually likes.But lately, Marcellus has been hearing talk of dragon-worshipers. His curiosity is piqued when his bride-to-be tells him that she herself is a dragon-worshiper, and urges him to go and meet the mysterious dragon. When Marcellus does so, he is enthralled by the dragon, but he also finds himself suspicious of its motives.Meanwhile, the Christian slaves who work for Marcellus’ father (whom Marcellus has always thought of as harmless, peaceful folk) have introduced him to their unique lifestyle, which he finds oddly intriguing. But the dragon asserts that these Christians are a danger to the Roman Empire, and that they ought to be eliminated.So what does Marcellus choose? A comfortable life serving the dragon and the Empire, or life as a Christian outlaw?Like you don’t already know.The story of St. George is fairly well-known, but it is significantly lacking in detail. Well, not anymore. In this book, the legend of St. George and the Dragon has been fleshed out and turned on its head for your reading pleasure. In a time when the words ‘YA literature’ mean sparkly vampires and shoddy writing, 'St. George and the Dragon' is a refreshing departure from the cultural norm, succeeding as a spiritually valuable piece of literature as well as an example of great storytelling.Engaging and well-written, my only problem with this story is that it was not long enough. Seriously. It could have been the length of ten pieces of Russian literature combined, and I still would have spilled taco salad all over it in my eagerness to finish it.One of my favorite parts was towards the end, when George/Marcellus is described killing the dragon in a way that directly mirrors the visual interpretation of the event in the original icon (which is featured on the cover of the book). The art and iconography nerd in me was immensely pleased.In case I didn’t already sell this enough, I recommend that you read this book. Now.

I had always half-imagined St George as the Christian knight, prancing in on his white horse to kill an evil dragon and probably leaving some swooning ladies in his wake. Not the most terribly interesting story. But this telling includes high drama, Roman history, a conversion, friendship and grief, told compellingly and with theological sophistication. In the dragon, Marcellus (who takes George as his baptismal name) encounters the true face of what he has worshiped and served — the Empire — and finds himself alternately seduced and repelled. Unable to make sense of or resist the dragon's pull on his old loyalties, he stumbles across a group of Christians worshipping on his father’s estate. Although initially shocked by their alien ways (men and women worshiping together! Slaves and freedmen embracing as brothers! Worship at a funeral and hope in death!) Marcellus finds them, and the hope they promise, strangely compelling. St George and the Dragon is nothing less than the story of a soul's death to life in Christ, the putting off the old man in a violently liberating way.The experience of the early Christians, and the radical upending of human empires and institutions (slavery, ancestor-worship, even marriage and friendship) that the gospel entails: it’s all here, in a story that will capture children’s imaginations as well as their parents’. This book would make a lovely family read-aloud, and offer excellent fodder for longer conversations with older children and teens. I heartily commend St George and the Dragon to you and hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

This is the possible backstory of a real man. Almost nothing is known about St. George beyond the fact that he killed a dragon. I guess this side of heaven we will never know how much of this story was inspired fact and how much was imagination of the author. But it is all certainly plausible from what we know about the historical era.

It's difficult to find a book on St. George despite his presence throughout the Christian and Muslim world. While fictional, this story is a page turner and inspires one to learn more about this historic figure. A truly wonderful read.

We are studying St. George and the Dragon within our homeschool history program. We are Orthodox Christians and I purchased this as an alternative to the one being offered by the protestant curriculum company. It is a good book. We enjoyed it but if you are looking for something authentic about the real St. George, you might have better luck online. This is fictional.