MEET THE BEAST

Nine-year-old Zeke’s father sends a care package to Zeke and his younger sister Hannah from an aircraft carrier in the Bermuda Triangle. When the package arrives and the kids bust it open fighting over it, candy wrappers flutter out—but no candy. Soon strange things begin to happen around the house: Snacks disappear, odd voices grumble in Zeke’s room, sneakers and dolls vanish. Zeke and Hannah mount a monster hunt and FIND ONE! Beast is a tiny magical refugee from Triangle Island, which is currently ruled by evil trolls. He has the tricksy magic of “swap-o.” For a short time, he can swap items from there (Triangle Island) to here. Zeke and Hannah find that can cause trouble, but it can also solve bully problems. Illustrator Nate Evans collaborates with his younger brother Vince for this wide-eyed kickoff to a new series for the chapter-book crowd. Fast action scenes switch to graphic format, and all of the copious black-and-white illustrations resemble cleaned-up MAD magazine comics with more goggling eyes. Good for a few goofy laughs. (Fiction. 6-9)