Separate pursuits of family and a science-fiction MacGuffin both lead to hilarity.
The continuing adventures of a would-be space conqueror and his down-to-earth prehistoric friends.
Extraterrestrial invader-turned-friend Jeff searches for the missing warp drive to his spacecraft. Helping him in this endeavor are the returning party, consisting of Carl, Trevor, Hungry, Spike, and Dragon. While sharing family stories, the group learns that dinosaur Hungry has never met their parents: “I hatched out of an egg, and I was…alone.” A side plot about Jeff’s abandoned pet, Charles, sees the crustacean growing into a rampaging beast—and eventually colliding with the main storyline. The group also contends with King Quazzy, who wants the warp drive for his own villainous reasons. Communication is frequently the key to progress, such as when a falling coconut breaks Jeff’s translator device, and he then speaks in (subtitled) German for roughly a third of the book. A priceless running punchline about profound parental advice is simultaneously elegant and absurd. Elsewhere, the cast members find solutions by asking for help and turning weaknesses into strengths. Visual humor is ever present and just as delightfully anachronistic as the verbal gags. Lepp uses King Quazzy’s enormity in interesting ways to show differences in scale, as in a panel in which Jeff is held up to Quazzy’s eyeball. New fans and returning series readers alike will enjoy this clever and humorous outing.
Separate pursuits of family and a science-fiction MacGuffin both lead to hilarity. (recipe, drawing instructions, Jeff’s alien alphabet) (Graphic fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: May 28, 2024
ISBN: 9780593565421
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Random House Graphic
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A wacky tale jam-packed with prehistoric hijinks and weird science.
Ari’s odorous T-shirt comes in handy on an unexpected trip to the Cretaceous Period.
New in town, Ari hasn’t made a single friend, though next-door neighbor Mr. Jakes’ frequent visits indicate his interest in Ari’s mom, an inventor who’s been deemed a “mad scientist” for her unusual experiments. Ari takes all this in stride, mostly. Mom’s latest project is a time portal that will allow her and Ari to retrieve piles of clean clothes from “the last time we washed, dried, and folded our laundry.” It’s a necessary creation; Ari’s been wearing a T-shirt that started to smell “four and one quarter days ago,” according to TED, Mom’s snarky, ice cube–size supercomputer. They decide to travel six weeks back in time, but when the portal overshoots their goal, Ari, Mom, TED, and Ari’s pet turtle, Fred, find themselves 60 million years in the past. Fred nearly becomes prey to a Tyrannosaurus, but fortunately the funk from Ari’s shirt is enough to scare off even a ferocious dinosaur. And, just maybe, there’s a better solution to the laundry problem—one that might bring Mom and Mr. Jakes a bit closer. The fast-moving story is filled with wild antics. Ari’s affection for Mom comes through clearly and humorously, and the book sets up the possibility of future mishaps. Goofy cartoons match the energy of the lighthearted adventures; characters have skin the white of the page.
A wacky tale jam-packed with prehistoric hijinks and weird science. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: March 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781665942973
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: Dec. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A winner.
When a young girl’s imagination and creativity are co-opted by a mysterious new friend, she must find a way to regain what is rightfully hers.
Sandy is a brown-skinned, dark-haired girl with big black eyes and a vivid imagination. At night, as she goes to sleep, she catches the lights bobbing about in her room and turns them into anything she imagines. The next day is spent drawing the fantastical creatures from her dreams, much to the detriment of her schoolwork. When a tall, pale-skinned girl with purple hair befriends her, Sandy is excited, though there is something eerie and unsettling about her new companion. Her excitement soon turns to anger as Morfie enters her imaginative nighttime world and tries to take it over. Readers will cheer at the clever way in which Sandy regains control. Using a lovely palette that includes a liberal amount of rich, dark purple, Colombian-born Alvarez has drawn a world that harks back to her native Bogotá and days in Catholic school, evoking it in wonderful detail and atmosphere. Her pages are not crowded yet are filled with details that will engage readers. The beings that inhabit Sandy’s nighttime world are simply delightful. The album size, cloth spine binding, and spot gloss on the cover are the icing on the cake of this beautiful graphic novel.
A winner. (Graphic fantasy. 8-10)Pub Date: March 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-910620-13-7
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Nobrow Ltd.
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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