Mungo is obsessed with outer space. His bedspread’s covered with spaceships, and even his teddy bear looks ready for blast-off. His mom knows her son will love the tattered comic book she found at a garage sale—Galacticus and Gizmo Save the Universe!—and she’s right. Oversized, colorful, action-packed pages reveal Captain Galacticus and his cute she-robot Gizmo “taking the GNASHING, SLASHING GOBBLEBEAST to space prison for eating two galaxies and a Mars.” Just as a gigantic robot spider begins tickling the Captain, Mungo and his mother discover the book’s last page is missing! Fortunately, a rocket ship transports the boy into the adventure and predictably, Mungo saves the day. Stower’s wild, comical illustrations are fun and artfully rendered, but the various hard-to-read typefaces are more dizzying than playfully chaotic. Indeed, the ingredients of an outrageous space fantasy are all here in this lively British import, along with a Captain Underpants sensibility (think ass-teroid jokes), but the superficially zesty story and dialogue seem stale. Ardent fans of gigantic robot spiders may not mind. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3277-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A chapter book series in the fine tradition of Frog and Toad. Minton is a salamander on the go; optimistic and adventurous, he’s always up for a trip. Best friend Turtle, like gloomy Eeyore, is the resident worrier, warning Minton that killer whales will eat him, lightning will strike or a monster wind will blow them out of the sky. But Minton remains undaunted. Though writing for new readers, Fienberg includes some pleasing descriptive words and phrases (scudding, supersonic, “told-you-so stroke”) that help make this a terrific read-aloud as well. Gamble’s full-color illustrations on each spread are just the thing for a reader who is ready for early chapter books. Originally published in Australia, this series retains British spelling and word choices: favourite, aeroplane and petrol, for example. After each short story, an art project, usually involving recycled materials and requiring adult assistance, helps extend the story. The next two titles are Minton Goes!: Driving and Trucking (ISBN: 978-1-74175-427-8) and Minton Goes!: Underwater and Home at Last (ISBN: 978-1-74175-429-2). Jolly good fun. (Fantasy. 5-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-74175-428-5
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2008
Jodie wants to be an archeologist; she’s eager to uncover treasures of ancient lands, just like her dad. Fortunately, she lives in Israel and is thrilled when her father agrees to take her on a dig to Modi’in, the site where Judah Maccabee fought the Syrians. Excited to help, Jodie convinces her father and the site’s head professor to let her scout down a small hole. Carefully lowered within a bucket, she announces a passageway of caves and grabs a possible arrowhead before being lifted back up. Topaz’s watercolors delineate a freckle-faced little girl whose agility and curiosity parallel the Maccabeean stamina in their struggle. Jodie’s find could possibly be from the time of the Maccabees, as she explains, who “must have been nimble enough to crawl through the tiny passageways, brave enough not to be afraid of the dark, and strong enough to fight off all the people who thought they were too little to win.” Levine provides an intriguing alternative to conventional retellings of the Hanukkah tale, juxtaposing archeology’s importance in understanding history against the ancient tradition. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-8225-7391-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kar-Ben
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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