An appealing adventure; vibrant in characterization, humor, and imagery.
Some tweens face their biggest challenge yet when their science fair submission morphs into a colossal, candy-crazed gummy bear in this graphic novel.
The 12-year-olds who make up the Not-So Secret Society—Aiden, Madison, Emma, Dylan, and Ava—are ready to brave the mythical world under the city. But first things first: their project for Mr. Pham’s science class is due tomorrow. Unfortunately, the snarky 5Z’s (Zuri, Ziran, Zed, Zamara, and Zach) show up fellow students with their invention—an Energy Cube—and boast about their anticipated triumph at the upcoming All-City Science Fair. After Ava confidently announces in class that NS3 will likewise be submitting something, the group scrambles for an idea, finally settling on a machine that brings candy to life. Amazingly, the contraption’s successful, and the friends have a walking Bear Hug, a tiny gooey treat they name Gummy. As it turns out, Gummy loves candy and, rather unexpectedly, increases in size with every piece he eats. The band recognizes that this is a potential problem but sadly can’t prevent Gummy from running off and gorging himself on sweets. NS3 tries capturing the bear before he gets bigger, but Halloween’s arrival means a plethora of readily available, now-dangerous candy. This winning tale by Matthew Daley (Lantern City, 2015) and debut author Arlene Daley is energized by a racially diverse cast of tween protagonists with assorted interests and problems. Ava’s love of wrestling, for one, contrasts with her small stature, while Emma’s shyness (displayed with faint dialogue-balloon text) becomes a hurdle to overcome. The comedy’s silly but good-natured, with the authors fully aware of the absurdity. Fearing Gummy will destroy the world, Ava notes: “We’re going to be in so much trouble.” There are pop-culture references (a giant squishy bear recalls 1984’s Ghostbusters) and educational value, like how to combat a sugary adversary. Clark’s (Regular Show, 2016, etc.) illustrations are brightly colored with bold lines and precise character features; some visuals, like the city’s library and Halloween extravaganza, are beautifully intricate. The book also includes 25 hilarious mini-comics from various artists and learning activities for young readers (including recycling).
An appealing adventure; vibrant in characterization, humor, and imagery.Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-60886-997-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: KaBOOM!
Review Posted Online: Aug. 7, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
The dream phantasms of a high-spirited narrator intersect, even crowd, reality, but the stream-of-consciousness text makes for a rambling, radically personal tale. Playful images of a stuffed lion, trampoline, purple shoes, and a cat named Pine-Cone take hold in a young girl’s imagination, despite her “old” mother who makes her go to bed when she’d rather “stay up early” and a big sister with a cranky disposition. At home, she likes counting flea bites and pretending to be a worm, but is afraid of the dark and going to Grade One. The second half of the book takes off in a separate first-day-of school direction. Wild dreams precede the big day, which includes bullies on the playground and instant friend Chelsea. The childlike articulations of the text are endearing, but not quite of universal interest, and don’t add up to a compelling story; children may more readily warm to Gay’s illustrations, which include a dreamlike flying cat, a menacing hot dog, and an uproarious stuffed toy looming over everyday domestic scenes. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 15, 1999
ISBN: 1-55143-107-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
Opening episodes of a comic-book series created by an American teacher in Japan take a leap into chapter-book format, with only partial success. Resembling—in occasional illustrations—a button-eyed, juvenile Olive Oyl, Akiko, 10, is persuaded by a pair of aliens named Bip and Bop to climb out her high-rise bedroom’s window for a trip to M&M-shaped Planet Smoo, where Prince Fropstoppit has been kidnapped by widely feared villainness Alia Rellaport. Along with an assortment of contentious sidekicks, including brainy Mr. Beeba, Akiko battles Sky Pirates and video-game-style monsters in prolonged scenes of cartoony violence, displaying resilience, courage, and leadership ability, but not getting very far in her rescue attempt; in fact, the story cuts off so abruptly, with so little of the quest completed, and at a lull in the action to boot, that readers expecting a self-contained (forget complete) story are likely to feel cheated. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 8, 2000
ISBN: 0-385-32724-2
Page Count: 162
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1999
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