I read a book as a child (in the mid to late 80s) that I believe had
the word "Badlands" somewhere in the title. It was one of those
"Choose your own adventure" type of books, although I don't think it
was from the publisher who did the "Choose your own adventure" series.
The story had something to do with your character being on a strange
planet, and I believe the ultimate goal was to slay a dragon. One of
the main things I remember about completing the book was that you had
to get poisoned by some creature and that you had to use a tomato to
kill the poisonous creature.

Any insight on what this title might be?

Hello misterrachel!

I believe the book you are looking for is "The Badlands of Hark" by
R.L. Stine, published in 1985.  It was a Choose Your Own Adventure
type of book (i.e. interactive fiction), but not put out by the Choose
Your people.

Here is some text that apparently appears on the back cover:
"Welcome to the planet Hark, a world of poison glamps, hungry xamps,
deadly mazes, oozing swamps-and these are the good parts of the
planet!"

Here's the Amazon.com detail page for it (includes a link to some
booksellers who have a used copy):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0590337726

Additional used copies from other booksellers can also be found at
bookfinder.com:
http://www.bookfinder.com/

I hope this information is useful.  If you would like for me to
clarify my answer or further research your question, please ask for a
clarification before issuing a rating.  Thanks!

leep-ga


search strategy:
Badlands + "choose your own adventure"
"The Badlands of Hark"

Wow! Right on the money!!! Thank you!