A mild futuristic caper.
His third outing sends 25th-century ragamuffin Max on a dramatic rescue mission.
Investigating the nature of a small, sticky square that bears the likeness of ancient tennis superstar Neptune Williams forces Max to descend from Skyburb 6 to smoggy but prosperous Bluggsville. There, not only are he and his airborne kind reviled as “shadies,” but his beloved beagle-bot falls into the clutches of archnemesis Capt. Selby and is shipped off to be reprogrammed. There’s nothing for it but to sneak back into the drab vocational institution from which he had escaped two years before and save his prized robo-pooch. With help from friends and a bit of techno-wizardry, he carries the caper off with aplomb. But the mysterious artifact fizzles, as no one really wants it except Max’s ex-roomie Brandon, who just happens to be a Neptune Williams fan and in an anticlimactic exchange casually identifies it as a postage stamp. Neither the narrative nor Atze’s cartoon drawings (in which all the human figures except Brandon, a few background faces, and the long-dead Williams are white) add enough detail to make the setting more than vaguely futuristic, and the prejudice against class rather than race may ring oddly in American ears (the series is an Australian import). Still, independent readers might find the rescue’s chases, escapes, and mild suspense absorbing. Macintosh tacks a disquisition on postage stamps to the end.
A mild futuristic caper. (Science fiction/mystery. 7-9)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5383-8468-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: West 44 Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
When evil, oversized alien rabbits land at Dingdale Elementary chool (the “S” has fallen off the sign so often that custodian Fuzzy Dustin refuses to fix it any more), it’s up to young Hercules Smith and his slobbery pooch Sheldon to save the Earth—or at least the student body—from being transformed into carrots. Luckily (or maybe not), a pair of the titular Wuv Bunnies, heavily armed with kisses and truly toxic jokes, arrive from the Outers Pace Galaxy to help out. Elliott and Long milk this premise for all it’s worth, dishing up a Captain Underpants–style mix of text and wild cartoons—the former well-stocked with authorial asides, the latter filled with big-toothed bunnies sporting antennae and high-fiving each other after each gag. Capped by a gratuitous barrage of extra jokes (“What did the duck say when she bought some lipstick? Just put it on my bill. HA! HA! HA! HA!”), this is all perfectly pitched to its audience and guaranteed to garner groans from the grown-ups. (Fantasy. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-8234-1902-9
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2008
Everyone wants to be a Goofball in this little town, and readers will want to follow their cases in the future. That #1 on...
Best friends, Mara, Kelly, Brian and Jeff are self-styled Goofball private eyes who solve unusual mysteries.
A private eye has to notice everything, and narrator Jeff and his three goofy friends notice every clue, even when they don’t realize its importance. Jeff just notes it down in his trusty clue book, because you never know when something might matter. When Randall Crandall calls the Goofballs to solve the mystery of his missing horse, Thunder, they call on all their detective skills in order to find Randall’s equine buddy. Short sentences, ample white space, oversized font, silly situations and punny wordplay make this a good choice for readers just ready for chapter books. Though some of the plot twists are downright ridiculous—the Goofballs successfully turn themselves into bushes, for instance—the overall story will satisfy young mystery readers with a funny bone. Charming black-and-white illustrations dot most spreads, helping new readers follow the tricky parts. According to the illustrations, Brian is African-American, a welcome touch in a genre where kids of color are often absent.
Everyone wants to be a Goofball in this little town, and readers will want to follow their cases in the future. That #1 on the spine ensures that there will be many more adventures from these goofy friends. (Mystery. 7-9)Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-60684-164-8
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Egmont USA
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011
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