GO CHEESE RACER

Noah Gouda craves a victory in a lunar car-racing competition in DaVeiga’s picture book.

Noah lives on a moon made of cheese and dreams of driving in its biggest race: the Great Amoonican Grand Brie. A year out from the big event, Noah and best friend Bleu build their racer, the Muenster Monster. They’re thrilled by their creation until they realize that Noah is too short to reach the pedals. By the time the Grand Brie rolls around, Noah has grown enough to drive the car, so he and Bleu enter the race at the last second. They’re up against a number of formidable opponents like Mac N. Cheese, Gorgonzilla, Hank the Hunk, and Betty Cheddar. The Monster’s competition slowly falls away until it’s just Noah and Bleu against Betty in the final turns of the track. This fresh installment in the Biff Bam Booza series is chock-full of cheese-based wordplay, from Noah Gouda’s name to “It could happen, you know? Once in a Bleu moon!” Peres’ illustrations pull inspiration from the bold lines, panels, and dialogue bubbles of comics illustrations to enhance the excitement. Although Noah’s problems solve themselves at two key moments rather too miraculously, that still doesn’t spoil what is ultimately a fun read.

A solid picture book for families looking for a new spin on car-racing stories.