More hilarious, high-energy, hammed-up hijinks.
Holy sequel, Batpig!
In this thoroughly enjoyable graphic follow-up to Batpig: When Pigs Fly (2021), Gary the pig and his alter ego, Batpig, return for more goofy adventures. Harrell’s tale is broken into three vignettes consisting of two longer chapters and a shorter interstitial section. In “The Class That Wouldn’t End!” Gary and his best friends, Brooklyn (a bat) and Carl (a fish), head to math class, and it seems like time is barely passing. They’re caught in a collective haze of boredom—even Brooklyn, who loves math, notices it. The trio soon discovers that time is slowly inching along thanks to the evil, vengeful Time Guy (the name Timekeeper was already taken). Batpig must now figure out how to make time fly if they ever want to escape the monotony of endless fractions. The briefer middle story, “Aquarium Dreams,” stars Brooklyn and Carl and sets the stage for the final tale, “Lights, Camera, Chaos!” This closing story is a comedic delight, with a pompous Hollywood superhero, meddling pastel aliens, a giant kitten/bee chimera (adorably monikered the Bumblekitten), and a deluge of stinky gym socks. No sophomore slump here: Harrell’s newest offering blends snicker-suffused action with a gentle emphasis on the importance of friendship. In Gary’s world, animals and humans coexist; humans (both young and old) are depicted with a range of skin tones.
More hilarious, high-energy, hammed-up hijinks. (Graphic fiction. 7-12)Pub Date: June 28, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35420-9
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2022
More trampling in the vineyards of the Literary Classics section, with results that will tickle fancies high and low.
Recasting Dog Man and his feline ward, Li’l Petey, as costumed superheroes, Pilkey looks East of Eden in this follow-up to Tale of Two Kitties (2017).
The Steinbeck novel’s Cain/Abel motif gets some play here, as Petey, “world’s evilest cat” and cloned Li’l Petey’s original, tries assiduously to tempt his angelic counterpart over to the dark side only to be met, ultimately at least, by Li’l Petey’s “Thou mayest.” (There are also occasional direct quotes from the novel.) But inner struggles between good and evil assume distinctly subordinate roles to riotous outer ones, as Petey repurposes robots built for a movie about the exploits of Dog Man—“the thinking man’s Rin Tin Tin”—while leading a general rush to the studio’s costume department for appropriate good guy/bad guy outfits in preparation for the climactic battle. During said battle and along the way Pilkey tucks in multiple Flip-O-Rama inserts as well as general gags. He lists no fewer than nine ways to ask “who cut the cheese?” and includes both punny chapter titles (“The Bark Knight Rises”) and nods to Hamiltonand Mary Poppins. The cartoon art, neatly and brightly colored by Garibaldi, is both as easy to read as the snappy dialogue and properly endowed with outsized sound effects, figures displaying a range of skin colors, and glimpses of underwear (even on robots).
More trampling in the vineyards of the Literary Classics section, with results that will tickle fancies high and low. (drawing instructions) (Graphic fantasy. 7-10)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-93518-0
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
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