by André Marois ; illustrated by Patrick Doyon ; translated by Taylor Norman ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2016
A tempest in a lunchbox, but just deserts are dished up in a lip-smacking denouement.
A young sleuth determinedly sets out to nab the thief who is spiriting sandwiches from his school lunchbox in this French Canadian import.
They are not just ordinary sandwiches. For one thing, Marin explains, his foodie mom makes the bread using flour “bought from a secret bakery run by kung fu monks.” For another, they’re delicious: ham, cheddar, and kale on Mondays; tuna, sundried tomatoes, and homemade mayo on Tuesdays, and so forth. Since the lunchbox has to stay out in the hall with everyone else’s, he can’t watch it directly—but he can complain (fruitlessly) to the principal, set traps, look for clues, and consider possible suspects. Doyon illustrates Marin’s campaign in jaggedly angular scenes highlighted with areas of gray and an orangey red that reflects the bereft lad’s sustained outrage. Blocks of first-person narration and dialogue in a “handwritten” typeface floating in the spacious margins add to the episode’s overall informal look. The limited palette makes it hard to discern skin color: when the characters are not stark white, they may be yellow. In the end, the culprit is revealed and justice served at once thanks to a sandwich laced with “flavor balls” tasting of “dirt-tar-soap-cough-syrup-cat-pee-chalk-vomit.” Ew.
A tempest in a lunchbox, but just deserts are dished up in a lip-smacking denouement. (Graphic fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4521-4659-1
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016
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by André Marois ; illustrated by Gérard DuBois ; translated by Nick Frost & Catherine Ostiguy
by Julia Nobel ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2020
Flimsily entertaining
An American schoolgirl in a British boarding school battles a secret society in this adventure.
In this trope-y sequel to The Mystery of Black Hollow Lane (2019), the students at Wellsworth must stay safe from the evil order that’s been there for generations and still entangles their parents. Emmy, a white, well-to-do Connecticut 12-year-old, is determined to return to Wellsworth even though last year she was nearly killed. The Order of Black Hollow Lane, the mysterious bad guys who are disguised as the school’s Latin Society, want something from Emmy. Her long-lost father, for one, and Emmy’s box of medallions, for another. Why? Do they really need a reason aside from being an evil club full of wickedness determined to find a whole box of MacGuffins that will somehow make them even richer and more powerful or at least propel the plot? In any case the dastardly fiends plague Emmy, framing one of her best friends for theft and leaving cryptic notes and computer files to threaten the lives of Emmy’s loved ones. Though the Order has infiltrated this (nearly all-white, wealthy) school for generations, Emmy must somehow defeat them and save her dad. The quest is peppered with spy-thriller moments that are mostly only thinly sketched and go nowhere, though some (such as a disguise right out of Scooby Doo cartoons) are funny enough to keep the action moving.
Flimsily entertaining . (Adventure. 9-11)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6467-3
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Sourcebooks Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2019
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by Joann Sfar & illustrated by Joann Sfar ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2003
The spotlight shifts to Little Vampire’s new human friend Michael in this mistitled sequel to Little Vampire Goes to School (p. 810). Beaten up in front of his girlfriend Sabrina by a bully named Jeffrey, Michael eagerly follows his undead buddy into a magic painting to meet Rabbi Solomon, feline “cat-balist” and kung-fu master. After a quick bout or two, Michael’s ready to rumble; unfortunately, in the meantime a trio of Little Vampire’s over-helpful monster friends have gone to Jeffrey’s house and eaten him. Several misadventures later, Jeffrey’s pieced back together—and though in the ensuing battle Michael’s martial arts skills disappear as quickly as they came, Sabrina sends the bully staggering off in a daze. Illustrated in crowded cartoon panels, the newest episode in this freewheeling graphic mini-novel offers plenty of gags (in more than one sense of the word), but will be incomprehensible to readers unfamiliar with the first chapter. (Picture book. 9-11)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-689-85769-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2003
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adapted by Joann Sfar & illustrated by Joann Sfar & translated by Sarah Ardizzone
BOOK REVIEW
by Joann Sfar & illustrated by Joann Sfar and translated by Alexis Siegel and Edward Gauvin
BOOK REVIEW
by Emmanuel Guibert & illustrated by Joann Sfar & translated by Elisabeth Brizzi & Alexis Siegel
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