McCormick and Lazzell try to pass off frenetic bad behavior and annoying sibling rivalry as amusing antics and engaging character development in this graphic-style chapter book.
The focus is on family interactions and everyday activities, though the family in question is at least a little bit odd. Inexplicably, Mr. Pants, an orange cat with two distinctly different-sized eyes, Foot Foot, a smaller gray cat, and Grommy, a white kitten with a pink bow, have a human mother who sports stylized Laura Petrie hair and gives off a retro vibe. The plot focuses on big brother Mr. Pants, who nags his mom for an end-of-summer outing while whining his way through a trip to the “Fairy Princess Dream Factory” and a back-to-school shopping spree. Uneven attempts at injecting humor vary from adultcentric (Mom’s shoe addiction and Mr. Pants’ nicknames for his sister, which include My Left Foot and Agony of deFeet) to gross-out (Mr. Pants’ grungy room). Despite the graphic-novel format, there’s no sense of flow to the static artwork, which features panels of varying sizes in mostly muted shades of mustard, plum, gray and mauve with flat, spare settings and simply silhouetted characters. Pedestrian, predictable and totally tedious, this generic effort fails to appeal either visually or literarily. (Graphic novel. 7-9)
Pub Date: July 10, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-8037-4007-5
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
What a wag.
What do you get from sewing the head of a smart dog onto the body of a tough police officer? A new superhero from the incorrigible creator of Captain Underpants.
Finding a stack of old Dog Mancomics that got them in trouble back in first grade, George and Harold decide to craft a set of new(ish) adventures with (more or less) improved art and spelling. These begin with an origin tale (“A Hero Is Unleashed”), go on to a fiendish attempt to replace the chief of police with a “Robo Chief” and then a temporarily successful scheme to make everyone stupid by erasing all the words from every book (“Book ’Em, Dog Man”), and finish off with a sort of attempted alien invasion evocatively titled “Weenie Wars: The Franks Awaken.” In each, Dog Man squares off against baddies (including superinventor/archnemesis Petey the cat) and saves the day with a clever notion. With occasional pauses for Flip-O-Rama featurettes, the tales are all framed in brightly colored sequential panels with hand-lettered dialogue (“How do you feel, old friend?” “Ruff!”) and narrative. The figures are studiously diverse, with police officers of both genders on view and George, the chief, and several other members of the supporting cast colored in various shades of brown. Pilkey closes as customary with drawing exercises, plus a promise that the canine crusader will be further unleashed in a sequel.
What a wag. (Graphic fantasy. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-58160-8
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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