INTO THE VOLCANO
by Don Wood & illustrated by Don Wood
From Caldecott Honoree Wood comes an inventive and imaginative graphic adventure. Brothers Duffy and Sumo Pugg are mysteriously pulled out of class one day and sent to the island nation of Kokalaha to stay with unfamiliar family members. The boys meet Auntie, the shady matriarch of the household (who resembles Ursula from Disney's Little Mermaid), who sends the boys and their newfound cousins on an expedition into a volcano. Danger ensues, and the boys must fight for their survival, and, ultimately, discover the truth propelling their quest. For the first time, the boys must work together and make their own choices outside of adult supervision. Wood’s illustrations of the fictional Kokalaha are particularly clever and lush, though his world-building is somewhat lacking in its development and could leave its readers with questions. The narrative moves along swiftly and incorporates elements of fantasy, demanding that the audience suspend disbelief and roll with the punches. Those who do will find a rollicking, fast-paced story that resolves itself nicely—an overall creative yarn of greed, family and survival. (Graphic fiction. 9-12)