Firefighter Steve Dragon, the public information officer for the Birdsboro-Union Fire Department, recently published his second children's book, "Were You Born a Dragon Too?" The book is a follow-up to his first one, "Were You Born a Dragon?" released in December 2019.

The books are based on stories that Dragon told his daughter, Rachel, while she was growing up. "Were You Born a Dragon?" tells the story of a boy named Steven and his father, who take Steven's newborn sister, Rachel, to the Land of Dragons. There, they must receive the blessing of the King of Dragons so that they can raise her to be a dragon. But first, they must get past Arnod, the Chief Security Dragon, who does not like children. Just as Dragon protects his daughter in real life, the character Steven protects his sister.

"The theme of the first one was standing up to bullies and brotherly love," Dragon said. "In the first book, (Steven, Rachel and their father) promised Zargon, the King of Dragons, that they will be back every year on Rachel's birthday. 'Were You Born a Dragon Too?' starts with Steven all excited because it is (Rachel's) first birthday and time to go back to the Land of Dragons. When they arrive, Steven is met by two dragons who will be his teachers. He is a little unwilling because he wants to have fun. The theme is the value of a good education and having fun while learning."

Dragon said that plans for the second book were already underway when the first one was published. "I basically had the whole layout of the second book done when the first one came out. It was a matter of getting the artwork done," he said, noting that the illustrator of both books is Catherine McMahon.

Dragon, who also teaches at the Montgomery County Fire Academy, read his first book to school students prior to the pandemic. "I went back to my elementary school, Ridge Park in Plymouth Meeting, and read to the second-graders there," he said. "When we graduated from there, they gave us a lapel pin, 'RPS 65,' and I wore that back to the school. It was neat to walk the halls again. It was a special day."

For more information about both books in the series, search for "Were You Born a Dragon?" on Facebook.