The infodumps aren’t heavy, but this isn’t much more than a vehicle for its tidbits of history and science.
The sudden appearance of dinosaurs in place of house pets and other modern animals sends four young time travelers scurrying back into the past in search of history-changing meddlers.
Hard on the heels of their first adventure in the past (The Wrong Wrights, 2016), Ajay (South Asian), Dominique (African-American), Eric, and Josephine (the latter two white) are dispatched by their mysterious Smithsonian contact back to the Philadelphia Exhibition of 1876. There, the nefarious Barris brothers are scheming to trump the hadrosaur fossil that was historically exhibited there with live dinos transported as eggs from the deep past. Internal logic is definitely not the strong suit here, as the dinosaurs, including predators, that are suddenly roaming freely and harmlessly through suburban neighborhoods have improbably supplanted “nearly every niche of fauna” except Homo sapiens. Still, with minor effort plus help from an evidently omniscient AI and such historical figures as Alexander Graham Bell (an exhibitor at the fair) the Barrises are thwarted and our own timeline restored. Well, not quite: a closing notice about the upcoming coronation of the “King of America” points to a new mission for the young science nerds. Glassy-eyed figures mostly just stand around and talk in the neatly squared-off panels, but the action, when there is any, is easy to follow.
The infodumps aren’t heavy, but this isn’t much more than a vehicle for its tidbits of history and science. (graphic afterword) (Graphic fantasy. 8-11)Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58834-567-7
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
An uplifting, sympathetic portrayal of dyslexia and friendship.
A young dyslexic girl struggles with reading.
Stella Martinez can’t wait to start fifth grade. She and her BFFs, Latasha and Emiko, even get to sit together in Miss Marin’s class. But to Stella’s dismay, school soon feels like “one big reading class.” Even math, one of her favorite subjects besides art, has word problems, and the fifth grade project is a Young Authors Competition. Textbooks have longer words and fewer pictures, making comprehension time-consuming, and Stella falls behind. Even the new online universe for Stella and her friends’ favorite show, Witchlins, requires a guidebook, which Stella has trouble following. As her BFFs and classmates discuss the game, Stella feels left out. Will reading ruin her friendships? Garcia, who based Stella’s story on her daughter’s journey of coming to terms with dyslexia and her own experiences with neurodivergence, introduces a multifaceted protagonist with a learning disability and encouragingly highlights various coping strategies. Adults are warmly supportive, barring a dour, gray-haired, light-skinned librarian whose misconception that graphic novels aren’t “real” books is emphatically dispelled. In keeping with Miss Marin’s affirmation that “all brains work differently,” the book’s clear lettering, decodable text, and expressive art invite readers of all abilities to root for Stella. Stella and her dad and sibling are brown-skinned and cued Latine; Mom is pale-skinned. Latasha presents Black, Emiko is of East Asian descent, and Miss Marin has light-brown skin.
An uplifting, sympathetic portrayal of dyslexia and friendship. (resources, cover design process) (Graphic fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: Jan. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9781250840882
Page Count: 208
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Epic lunacy.
Will extragalactic rats eat the moon?
Can a cybernetic toenail clipper find a worthy purpose in the vast universe? Will the first feline astronaut ever get a slice of pizza? Read on. Reworked from the Live Cartoon series of homespun video shorts released on Instagram in 2020 but retaining that “we’re making this up as we go” quality, the episodic tale begins with the electrifying discovery that our moon is being nibbled away. Off blast one strong, silent, furry hero—“Meow”—and a stowaway robot to our nearest celestial neighbor to hook up with the imperious Queen of the Moon and head toward the dark side, past challenges from pirates on the Sea of Tranquility and a sphinx with a riddle (“It weighs a ton, but floats on air. / It’s bald but has a lot of hair.” The answer? “Meow”). They endure multiple close but frustratingly glancing encounters with pizza and finally deliver the malign, multiheaded Rat King and its toothy armies to a suitable fate. Cue the massive pizza party! Aside from one pirate captain and a general back on Earth, the human and humanoid cast in Harris’ loosely drawn cartoon panels, from the appropriately moon-faced queen on, is light skinned. Merch, music, and the original episodes are available on an associated website.
Epic lunacy. (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: May 10, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-308408-7
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
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