Books like Elmer and the Dragon

I can't quite remember if I read this one as a child too, but I'm pretty sure I did. If I did, I could remember absolutely nothing about it by now, so it was basically like reading it for the first time. This book picks up directly after the last page of the previous book, and continues the adventures of Elmer Elevator and the baby dragon. After Elmer saves his friend from the animals of Wild Island, they journey to take Elmer home, but become waylaid by a fierce storm at sea. When the storm calms, Elmer and the dragon find themselves on the shores of Feather Island, inhabited entirely by canaries rules by King Can XI, who is slowly but surely dying of curiosity (as did all his predecessors). Elmer, using considerably less resources, though just as much ingenuity, is able to help them unearth the mystery that's besetting them so.It was really fun to read the continuing adventures of these great characters, but something about this story didn't quite stand out to me as much. I loved the pattern of the first one and how each little thing meant something, and this story just seemed a little more random. I did like the canaries (though, because of the first book, I expected them to stick around for a chapter or two at most), and I liked how there seemed to be some real danger at the beginning. When I realized that the narrator was no longer Elmer's son telling his father's adventures (Elmer is just Elmer now) I was a little surprised too, so maybe that's why I thought this one wasn't quite as good as the first. The anecdotal tone of the first one really lent itself to the overall charm. But it was still a delight to read, and the illustrations were still really fun. I don't know exactly how I feel about Elmer arriving home after several days away and not having to explain his whereabouts to his clueless parents, but it didn't bother me that much. It was just as quick to read as the previous book, and I still rather liked it.I did enjoy this great sequel to My Father's Dragon, but it didn't charm me quite as much as the first book in the series did.