Never ones to learn from past mistakes, Joe, Sam, and Fred, collectively the Time Warp Trio, again horse around until they knock open The Book and are whisked away to another era. This time it’s ancient Rome, and a gladiator school run by one (don’t you dare laugh) Dorkius. Losing no time setting off a food fight in the gladiatorial lunchroom and getting on the wrong sides of aptly named Horridus and Brutus, off they hie to the newly built Colosseum, to woo the crowds with some WWF-style razzle-dazzle, lead their hulking nemeses on a merry chase through the streets of Rome, and reclaim The Book, their ticket to the present, from a Vestal Virgin. As usual, the tale tumbles along at a frantic clip past cliffhangers, wisecracks, and even some subliminal tidbits of facts, the last capped by a handy list of English/Latin phrases, such as “Which way to the vomitorium? / Qua via itur ad vomitorium?” Even with a new illustrator slipping into Lane Smith’s accustomed place, the Time Warp Trio continues to rule the “skinny book” shelves with just the right hook for that elusive not-quite-avid-reader audience that loves them. Illustrations not seen. (Fiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-670-89340-4
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Guys writing poetry? What a radical concept. Horsing around over a homework assignment, the Time Warp Trio inadvertently utters a haiku near The Book, and is “flushed down four hundred years,” to ancient Japan where, after heroically wiping out an empty suit of samurai armor, nearly getting sliced into sushi by plug-ugly samurai Owattabut (guess why) and meeting their own granddaughters (see 2095, 1995) paddling along on a temporal jaunt of their own, the three entertain the great Ieyasu Tokugawa himself with a string of haiku that propel them back to Brooklyn—but merit only a C- from their teacher, Ms. Basho. Aswirl with mini-lectures and crumbs of general information about Japanese poetry and society, the arbitrary plot line and wiseacre dialogue will elicit the usual rumbles—of laughter, that is. It’s not the freshest of the Trio’s escapades, but the author plainly isn’t ready to throw in the bowel—er, towel, quite yet. (Fiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-670-89915-1
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A hybrid format—part blocks of text, part graphic-novel-style cartoon panels—revs up this unvarnished karate adventure. Battling a sense of inadequacy, 11-year-old Max joins a trio of preteen black belts in doing battle with the evil Death Master, who has stolen the Tree of Life’s seven wheels, or energy centers, or (as the author explains in her afterword) chakras. This naturally entails much kicking, punching, and exercising of inner good qualities, interleaved with family issues, internecine bickering, and words of wisdom from both Sensei Dawn (a character, as well as the author) and a turbaned Sage. Veteran comics artist Chang creates simply designed black and white strips and single panels for every page, featuring young folk in karate gis squaring off against an array of oversized, over-muscled, often toothy adversaries. Though the closing gallery of karate blocks and attacks is hedged with dangerously perfunctory cautions, readers swept along by the nonstop action will have encountered compensatory doses of karate principles and dojo etiquette along the way. Future episodes, plus a feature film and other marketing ventures, are in the works. (Fiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: March 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-439-63935-2
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Blue Sky/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2005
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