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The Tale of Custard the Dragon Paperback – Picture Book, April 1, 1998

by Ogden Nash (Author), Lynn Munsinger (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 246 ratings
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In this humorous poem, Custard the cowardly dragon saves the day when a pirate threatens Belinda and her pet animals.
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  1. Reading age
    2 - 6 years, from customers
  2. Print length
    32 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    Preschool - 3
  5. Dimensions
    8 x 0.13 x 10 inches
  6. Publisher
    Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
  7. Publication date
    April 1, 1998
  8. ISBN-10
    0316590312
  9. ISBN-13
    978-0316590310
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Custard cowers in fearAuntil a nasty pirate shows up and inspires his dragonly instincts. In PW's words, famed Nash's "wordplayful 1936 rhyme gets a fresh start with timeless illustrations by Munsinger." Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Ogden Nash is considered one of the country's best-known writers of humorous poetry, admired for his clever rhymes and lyrical verse. He has written several books for children.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (April 1, 1998)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 32 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0316590312
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0316590310
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 2 - 6 years, from customers
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ Preschool - 3
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 4.5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8 x 0.13 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 246 ratings

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Ogden Nash

Ogden Nash

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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
246 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

M.W.
5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT POEM!
Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2023
Verified Purchase
I loved reading this poem to my daughter 20 years ago and soon I will be reading this to my grandson. This Ogden Nash poem has good rhythm for reciting to a beat. It gives you good opportunity to take deep breaths between lines. The poems are exciting and cute. It is so much better than reading dreary prose with long lines that go on and on forever. With prose you talk so long, you can never catch a breath, you get low on oxygen, you start yawning and you want to fall asleep. That won't happen with this Ogden Nash poem. The beat of the rhythm of the stanzas, the cute exciting story, the deep breaths at the end of short lines, will want you to keep going on and on to the very end. I LOVE IT! More importantly, my daughter loved it when she was a child. Soon my grandchild will enjoy hearing me recite, the way babies love to hear happy family voices, full of energy!
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Robert
5.0 out of 5 stars Funny and cute poem about bravery
Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2022
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This is a great little book. I know because after I read it to my daughters (3 and 5) they immediately demanded I start over and read it again. Then they described the story to their mom and then made her read it to them. So it's a good one.

Ogden Nash's wordplay and clever rhymes are wonderful and timeless. Lynn Munsinger has done a fine job capturing the playful spirit with cute illustrations.

For anyone who doesn't know, Ogden Nash wrote the poem "Custard the Dragon" in 1936. Lynn Munsinger did the illustrations and made it into a book in 1995. Nash had been dead for 24 years by that time so we'll never know what he would have thought, but as far as I'm concerned it's a classic.
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Shannon
5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful story with lots of big words
Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 2014
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I originally purchased this book for my nephew when he was 4 years old (10 years ago). It has become a family favorite so I went hunting for a copy for own 4 year old. It has a wonderful theme (being brave does not mean being unafraid) and the amount of gore is perfect for a 4 year old boy. That said, I would recommend waiting until your child is old enough to handle a wee bit of gore and some very big words. We spent the first several readings having to stop frequently to define words.

*** SPOILER ALERT ***

The story: Custard is a very timid dragon who lives with a young girl, her dog, her cat, and her mouse. He is not fierce and is afraid of everything and his mates are always teasing him for it. Then one day, a pirate attacks the young girl. Her dog, cat and mouse all run away to save themselves. Custard, however, in a very startling turn of events, eats the pirate and saves his friend.
4 people found this helpful
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katyklsym
5.0 out of 5 stars Nash is a Bash
Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2022
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My dad recited Ogden Nash poetry to me and my siblings as children and this was always one of my favorites. I love being able to pass it on the my niblings and share this bit of joy with them.
3 people found this helpful
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MBR
5.0 out of 5 stars Charming and funny!
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2022
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Love Ogden Nash and liked that this is hardcover and illustrated.
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Janet R.
4.0 out of 5 stars Ending could be better
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2006
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I enjoy the poetry of Ogden Nash -- he has a fun style, which is well-apparent in this book. The pictures are delightful also. I felt a little let down by the author's ending because I expected the dragon to rise above his fears. However, I used the story as an opportunity to discuss with my child how she thought the story should finish. Together we wrote in a new ending line and are happy with the result. It probably turned out better with her getting involved in the story this way.
3 people found this helpful
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Sara Singer
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book by a master poet
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2021
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The best & most fun rhyming story for children. Adults love it too! No library should be without this book.
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F. Morris Rosman
5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous books for kids (and their grown-ups)
Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2020
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I first read this poem a zillion years ago and loved it. Ogden Nash deserves sainthood! Grab a kid or two and read this together, it's one book where the illustrations AND the words are equally fantastic. Do you speak English? Then buy this book! Trust me, I'm a librarian.
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Top reviews from other countries

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PodHunter
5.0 out of 5 stars Custard the Dragon: a Great Poem for Kids
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 4, 2024
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I searched for a while for this book, which is not available from publishers in the UK. The vendor obtained ex-library books from the US. I don't understand how they could ship them across the Atlantic ocean at such little cost.
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Abraham Scheerlinck
5.0 out of 5 stars Zalig boekje
Reviewed in the Netherlands on June 16, 2023
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Super cute verhaal en cover. Goeie kwaliteit.
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Debbie Strong
5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful poetic story for all ages!
Reviewed in Canada on September 25, 2020
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I first got to know of Custard when I bought the second book in this set for my 5-year-old son back in 1995. We "reallio trulio" loved Custard and the rhythm and prose as we were carried along his journey with Melinda.

I was looking for something to give to his wife and their newborn son this year and just knew that as a grandmother I was duty-bound to introduce my grandson to Custard.

You can only imagine my delight when I found this first book of the story. I love the way that Ogden Nash uses imagery in his writing and enables young readers to be introduced to poetry. This is truly a wonderful gift to be blessed to read.
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MAVE
5.0 out of 5 stars My kid’s favourite
Reviewed in Canada on August 29, 2019
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Love the rhythm and the imagery
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Hawkster
5.0 out of 5 stars My favourite children's book and my daughters too
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 20, 2013
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Ogden Nash is my favourite poet and I have loved his poems and children's stories since I was a kid. I started reading this book to my daughter from an early age and now aged nearly two she asks for it often. It's got great repetition, an engaging story and lovely illustrations. I would say this is more of a book for a longer attention span, or perhaps for slightly older children, it is a firm favourite in our house.
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