Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher

Jeremy Thatcher, the protagonist of the novel, is described as “the shortest boy in sixth grade” (16). Jeremy’s interest in dragons is established from the story’s beginning, for the first lines state, “Jeremy Thatcher crumpled his paper in disgust. The dragon he had been trying to draw looked like a dog with wings” (13). He is creative, sensitive, and deeply passionate about art despite the constant criticisms of his school’s art teacher. As the son of a veterinarian, he takes good care of animals and has several small pets. However, his struggles with bullying and the pressures of school often leave him feeling isolated and misunderstood. His story starts he flees from a pair of school bullies, and a girl named Mary Lou, who has a crush on him. Becoming lost, he stumbles across Mr. Elives’ magic shop and finds a dragon egg, which responds to him. Jeremy buys it for a quarter and follows the instructions required to hatch it.

As he begins to realize the many challenges that come with raising a baby dragon, the experience causes him to grow and mature considerably. At first, he is overwhelmed by the responsibility of caring for the dragon, whom he names Tiamat.