A straightforward and charming introduction to the world of butterflies.
Curious young investigators are invited to explore the world of butterflies in the second installment of Tomé’s Junior Detectives series.
For the readers—the Junior Detectives of the title—the adventure begins with gear, including a detective hat, a detective guide, a magnifying glass, and, last but not least, a map. The map will be especially useful, as in these pages they will be traveling by plane to a tropical forest to study butterflies in their natural habitat. Once in the forest, readers observe the life cycle of a butterfly, from butterfly’s egg laid on the top of a leaf to voracious caterpillar that will eventually make its own chrysalis where it will stay for up to three weeks to undergo metamorphosis into a butterfly. Junior Detectives will learn other fun facts about their subject, including the origin of the name “butterfly,” the environmental impact of butterflies and their pollination of plants, and more anatomical tidbits about their fragile wings and the way they retrieve nectar from flowers. Readers also observe and learn about standout species of butterflies, including the distinctive black and orange Monarch Butterfly, the endangered Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing, the super-fast Skipper Butterfly, and the nearly transparent Greta oto, or Glasswing, Butterfly. Tomé’s children’s book, the second in a series, is packed with interesting information not only about butterflies, but also ecosystems, including food chains and endangered species. Santos’ illustrations are vivid and cartoonish, and facts are presented through a simple storyline that invites the reader to investigate the forest as a fellow detective. While the conversational, call-and-response style of writing grows a bit repetitive, it feels suitable to engage curious young readers: “Hey, Junior Detectives, what is that on the leaf? It’s long, yellow, and fuzzy, and it looks like it’s eating the leaf? You’re right! It’s a caterpillar.”
A straightforward and charming introduction to the world of butterflies.Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2024
ISBN: 9781038317117
Page Count: 48
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel.
Sure signs that the creative wells are running dry at last, the Captain’s ninth, overstuffed outing both recycles a villain (see Book 4) and offers trendy anti-bullying wish fulfillment.
Not that there aren’t pranks and envelope-pushing quips aplenty. To start, in an alternate ending to the previous episode, Principal Krupp ends up in prison (“…a lot like being a student at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, except that the prison had better funding”). There, he witnesses fellow inmate Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) escape in a giant Robo-Suit (later reduced to time-traveling trousers). The villain sets off after George and Harold, who are in juvie (“not much different from our old school…except that they have library books here.”). Cut to five years previous, in a prequel to the whole series. George and Harold link up in kindergarten to reduce a quartet of vicious bullies to giggling insanity with a relentless series of pranks involving shaving cream, spiders, effeminate spoof text messages and friendship bracelets. Pilkey tucks both topical jokes and bathroom humor into the cartoon art, and ups the narrative’s lexical ante with terms like “pharmaceuticals” and “theatrical flair.” Unfortunately, the bullies’ sad fates force Krupp to resign, so he’s not around to save the Earth from being destroyed later on by Talking Toilets and other invaders…
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-17534-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2012
Series fans, at least, will take this outing (and clear evidence of more to come) in stride.
Zipping back and forth in time atop outsized robo–bell bottoms, mad inventor Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) legs his way to center stage in this slightly less-labored continuation of episode 9.
The action commences after a rambling recap and a warning not to laugh or smile on pain of being forced to read Sarah Plain and Tall. Pilkey first sends his peevish protagonist back a short while to save the Earth (destroyed in the previous episode), then on to various prehistoric eras in pursuit of George, Harold and the Captain. It’s all pretty much an excuse for many butt jokes, dashes of off-color humor (“Tippy pressed the button on his Freezy-Beam 4000, causing it to rise from the depths of his Robo-Pants”), a lengthy wordless comic and two tussles in “Flip-o-rama.” Still, the chase kicks off an ice age, the extinction of the dinosaurs and the Big Bang (here the Big “Ka-Bloosh!”). It ends with a harrowing glimpse of what George and Harold would become if they decided to go straight. The author also chucks in a poopy-doo-doo song with musical notation (credited to Albert P. Einstein) and plenty of ink-and-wash cartoon illustrations to crank up the ongoing frenzy.
Series fans, at least, will take this outing (and clear evidence of more to come) in stride. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-17536-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2013
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