Familiar fairy-tale motifs and folkloric repetition make this a solid choice for newly independent readers.
A monster story from Chile, tailor-made for new readers.
When the king tires of his three naughty daughters’ tricks, he turns them into oranges and stations a guard under the tree they hang from to keep them safe. When monsters Grim and Grunt hear about the orange princesses, they inveigle their youngest brother, Grizzle-Tail, into terrifying the guard and making off with the fruit one at a time. The king is left in despair after two of the oranges are thus captured. Servant Pedro steps up and offers to guard the final orange. When Grizzle-Tail comes back, Pedro pierces his skin as he grabs the orange and flies away, leaving a trail of blood. Pedro follows the trail, Hansel-and-Gretel style, until he finds not only the first two (cowardly) guards, but the monsters’ land and the princesses, too. A dandy trickster tale on many levels, it offers monsters scary enough to chill the youngest readers without causing nightmares. With saturated acrylics and droll dialogue in speech bubbles, the illustrations both extend the text and keep the action zipping along.
Familiar fairy-tale motifs and folkloric repetition make this a solid choice for newly independent readers. (sources) (Folktale/early reader. 6-10)Pub Date: May 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-84686-910-5
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Lighthearted spook with a heaping side of silliness—and hair.
Fifth graders get into a hairy situation.
After an unnamed narrator’s full-page warning, readers dive right into a Wolver Hollow classroom. Mr. Noffler recounts the town legend about how, every Oct. 19, residents don fake mustaches and lock their doors. As the story goes, the late Bockius Beauregard was vaporized in an “unfortunate black powder incident,” but, somehow, his “magnificent mustache” survived to haunt the town. Once a year, the spectral ’stache searches for an exposed upper lip to rest upon. Is it real or superstition? Students Parker and Lucas—sole members of the Midnight Owl Detective Agency—decide to take the case and solve the mustache mystery. When they find that the book of legends they need for their research has been checked out from the library, they recruit the borrower: goth classmate Samantha von Oppelstein. Will the three of them be enough to take on the mustache and resolve its ghostly, unfinished business? Whether through ridiculous plot points or over-the-top descriptions, the comedy keeps coming in this first title in McGee’s new Night Frights series. A generous font and spacing make this quick-paced, 13-chapter story appealing to newly confident readers. Skaffa’s grayscale cartoon spot (and occasional full-page) illustrations help set the tone and accentuate the action. Though neither race or skin color is described in the text, images show Lucas and Samantha as light-skinned and Parker as dark-skinned.
Lighthearted spook with a heaping side of silliness—and hair. (maps) (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-8089-6
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Cute as a boo-ton—if a tad stereotypical.
Ghost siblings ghoul it up in a new graphic-novel series.
A “THUMP” from the attic sends siblings Fitz and Cleo up to investigate. The spooky vibes delight Cleo, so she improvises “The Spooky Attic Song.” Fitz tries to shush his sister so they can maintain “the element of surprise” as they approach the sound’s source. The mystery is solved: It’s a cat! Cleo promptly scoops the (seemingly mortal) cat up and names him Mister Boo. Fitz has reservations but relents when Mister Boo sits on his head. Ten subsequent chapters, varying between four and seven pages in length, chronicle the trio’s further shenanigans. Husband-and-wife team Stutzman and Fox create an entertaining early graphic novel in the vein of Ben Clanton’s Narwhal and Jelly series. Though there are occasional speech bubbles, dialogue is most often connected to the speaker by a solid black line. Sentences are short, and there are at most two speakers per panel. Additionally, with no more than six panels per page and simple backgrounds, the story provides adequate support to emerging readers. Fox’s expressive illustrations and clever use of panel layouts effectively build off the humor in Stutzman’s text. Cleo is depicted with a purple bow; Fitz with a baseball cap and glasses. Unfortunately, their personalities as well as their appearances play into gender stereotypes.
Cute as a boo-ton—if a tad stereotypical. (Graphic fantasy. 6-10)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-23944-0
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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