A madcap marine scramble.
Diving kitties Max and Milo face giant robot spider crabs and worse as they try to save the oceans from a deadly threat in this graphic series opener.
Incorporating actual (if improbably named) sea life into this aquatic adventure, Tashjian pairs her two furry agents of the S.O.S. (“Save Our Seas”) Academy with Judy, a sarcastic fringehead fish sidekick (“You don’t have to be so snarky all the time.” “I think I do”) and pits them against a criminal organization of red-lipped batfish. It seems that a special crystal strong enough to control the tides has been stolen, and there are lip marks all over the crime scene. There’s nothing for it but to dive into the disguise kit for lipstick and try to infiltrate the “huge undersea criminal headquarters” hidden beneath the Galápagos Islands—or, failing that, cleverly use pool noodles, exploding candy, and other high-tech gear to retrieve the crystal. Holman lays the mission out in an easy-to-follow flow of borderless monochrome panels and montages, incorporating undersea creatures and natural features drawn with reasonable attention to detail. He also amplifies the banter’s comical tone with images of scaled and furry figures with wild googly eyes. Readers will be happy to follow the feckless felines on to further exploits—particularly after a closing teaser involving an incursion of Aqua Pugs wielding chew toy brain implants.
A madcap marine scramble. (fun facts, drawing lesson) (Graphic adventure. 6-9)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2026
ISBN: 9780316335744
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: yesterday
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
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Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends
Gerald the elephant learns a truth familiar to every preschooler—heck, every human: “Waiting is not easy!”
When Piggie cartwheels up to Gerald announcing that she has a surprise for him, Gerald is less than pleased to learn that the “surprise is a surprise.” Gerald pumps Piggie for information (it’s big, it’s pretty, and they can share it), but Piggie holds fast on this basic principle: Gerald will have to wait. Gerald lets out an almighty “GROAN!” Variations on this basic exchange occur throughout the day; Gerald pleads, Piggie insists they must wait; Gerald groans. As the day turns to twilight (signaled by the backgrounds that darken from mauve to gray to charcoal), Gerald gets grumpy. “WE HAVE WASTED THE WHOLE DAY!…And for WHAT!?” Piggie then gestures up to the Milky Way, which an awed Gerald acknowledges “was worth the wait.” Willems relies even more than usual on the slightest of changes in posture, layout and typography, as two waiting figures can’t help but be pretty static. At one point, Piggie assumes the lotus position, infuriating Gerald. Most amusingly, Gerald’s elephantine groans assume weighty physicality in spread-filling speech bubbles that knock Piggie to the ground. And the spectacular, photo-collaged images of the Milky Way that dwarf the two friends makes it clear that it was indeed worth the wait.
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends . (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9957-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2014
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