Tapped to save the world by advertisement-spouting alien SPHDZ Jen and Bob (who resemble human kids), beleaguered fifth grader Michael K. continues his quest to recruit 3.14 million earthlings to be Spaceheadz lest the Earth be turned off. Even more beleaguered Anti-Alien Agency Agent Umber continues his quest to find the aliens in or near Brooklyn PS 858. Michael K. has some help in new friends Venus and TJ, but the whole group has to act as Big Buddies to the kindergarteners and help with their class play, while Spaceheadz General Accounting has given them one hour to get 1 million new Spaceheadz (thank goodness one Spaceheadz hour equals 700 Earth hours). Can they boost recruitment without giving themselves away? Will Agent Umber ever succeed at anything? Will the plumbing at PS 858 survive the surplus World War II rations the kids all eat? The second volume in Scieszka and Prigmore’s nutty, antic series offers more goofy fun with some pretty obvious setup for episode three. The integrated websites will be updated and supplemented to extend the laughs. CLINICALLY PROVEN entertainment for fans old and new! (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4169-7953-1
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Dizzyingly silly.
The famous superhero returns to fight another villain with all the trademark wit and humor the series is known for.
Despite the title, Captain Underpants is bizarrely absent from most of this adventure. His school-age companions, George and Harold, maintain most of the spotlight. The creative chums fool around with time travel and several wacky inventions before coming upon the evil Turbo Toilet 2000, making its return for vengeance after sitting out a few of the previous books. When the good Captain shows up to save the day, he brings with him dynamic action and wordplay that meet the series’ standards. The Captain Underpants saga maintains its charm even into this, the 11th volume. The epic is filled to the brim with sight gags, toilet humor, flip-o-ramas and anarchic glee. Holding all this nonsense together is the author’s good-natured sense of harmless fun. The humor is never gross or over-the-top, just loud and innocuous. Adults may roll their eyes here and there, but youngsters will eat this up just as quickly as they devoured every other Underpants episode.
Dizzyingly silly. (Humor. 8-10)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-50490-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
A plucky mouse finds her true home in this warm, winning tale.
An orphan mouse unexpectedly arrives at Heartwood Hotel, which she hopes will become the home she’s seeking.
Mona’s never had a home for long. After a storm forces her to flee her latest forest shelter, she discovers an enormous tree with a heart carved into its trunk. When Mona presses the heart, a door opens, and she enters the lobby of Heartwood Hotel, where small forest critters hibernate, eat, and celebrate in safety. The kindhearted badger proprietor, Mr. Heartwood, takes pity on homeless Mona, allowing her to stay for the fall to assist the maid, Tilly, a red squirrel. Grateful to be at Heartwood, Mona strives to prove herself despite Tilly’s unfriendly attitude. Mona’s clever approaches with a wounded songbird, an anxious skunk, and a wayward bear win Mr. Heartwood’s approval. But when Mona accidentally breaks a rule, Tilly convinces her she will be fired. As Mona secretly leaves Heartwood, she discovers marauding wolves planning to crash Heartwood’s Snow Festival and devises a daring plan to save the place she regards as home. Charming anthropomorphic characters, humorous mishaps, and outside threats add to the drama. Delicate pencil illustrations reinforce Heartwood’s cozy home theme. A sequel, The Greatest Gift, publishes simultaneously.
A plucky mouse finds her true home in this warm, winning tale. (Animal fantasy. 7-10)Pub Date: July 4, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4847-3161-1
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2017
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