Children will delight in the tales of The Briar Hill Brats by Jennifer Merrill. Merrill has created a whimsical story of a family of dragons living in an enchanted town known as Briar Hill.Five stories make up this endearing book centered around the antics of nine young dragons-five girls and four boys. In their world, goblins, owls, turtles and all sorts of fun, fuzzy creatures are their playmates. Merrill creates colorful and imaginative creatures that children will identify with and come to know and love. There's mommy dragon, Ginger, who not only runs a busy household, but is head of the Dragon Council. Daddy dragon, Snap, works on windmills and Maurice is an extraordinary goblin that helps out around the house. Then, there are the nannies that help mommy with the children. The children, with their varied and special personalities, are in and out of mischief but always, always are a family ready to help each other out. Merrill's voice is observant, sharp and intuitive-containing a childlike wonder-while incorporating important values about family and how different people can make up the family unit. Children and parents will revisit Briar Hill again and again and recognize themselves in these wonderfully charismatic characters.Jennifer Merrill is a children's writer and full-time student. Ms. Merrill is currently writing the sequel to her book and lives with her family in Michigan. is her first published work.