A clever concept that falls flat.
When a planet that hosts a nonhuman civilization is doomed, can explorer Finn Caspian save the day?
Finn Caspian, the first child born in space and the Chief Detective for Explorers Troop 301, lives aboard the Famous Marlowe 280 Interplanetary Exploratory Space Station. This first offering in a proposed series drops readers right into the action as Finn and his friends and troopmates Abigail Obaro, Elias Carreras, Vale Gil, and Foggy the robot are tasked with preventing the imminent explosion of a planet inhabited by nonhuman individuals with four eyes apiece, no mouths, and translucent heads. The kids are soon split between two factions on the doomed planet and unsure whom to believe. Will the group manage to resolve their rift and work together again? Inspired by the podcast of the same name, this heavily illustrated, fast-paced, and plot-driven tale is high on action but slim in character development, perhaps gone missing in translation from one medium to another. Finn, who presents White, is the oldest member of the group but not its leader; dark-skinned, decisive Abigail is. Even though she’s the captain, Abigail doesn’t receive much attention from the author, leaving her a one-dimensional vehicle who constantly propels Finn. Elias and Vale also appear to be kids of color. Sequel The Accidental Volcano publishes simultaneously.
A clever concept that falls flat. (Science fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-293215-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
Dizzyingly silly.
The famous superhero returns to fight another villain with all the trademark wit and humor the series is known for.
Despite the title, Captain Underpants is bizarrely absent from most of this adventure. His school-age companions, George and Harold, maintain most of the spotlight. The creative chums fool around with time travel and several wacky inventions before coming upon the evil Turbo Toilet 2000, making its return for vengeance after sitting out a few of the previous books. When the good Captain shows up to save the day, he brings with him dynamic action and wordplay that meet the series’ standards. The Captain Underpants saga maintains its charm even into this, the 11th volume. The epic is filled to the brim with sight gags, toilet humor, flip-o-ramas and anarchic glee. Holding all this nonsense together is the author’s good-natured sense of harmless fun. The humor is never gross or over-the-top, just loud and innocuous. Adults may roll their eyes here and there, but youngsters will eat this up just as quickly as they devoured every other Underpants episode.
Dizzyingly silly. (Humor. 8-10)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-50490-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale.
After a tsunami devastates their habitat in the Salish Sea, a young orca and her brother embark on a remarkable adventure.
Vega’s matriarchal family expects her to become a hunter and wayfinder, with her younger brother, Deneb, protecting and supporting her. Invited to guide her family to their Gathering Place to hunt salmon, Vega’s underwater miscalculations endanger them all, and an embarrassed Vega questions whether she should be a wayfinder. When the baby sister she hoped would become her life companion is stillborn, a distraught Vega carries the baby away to a special resting place, shocking her grieving family. Dispatched to find his missing sister, Deneb locates Vega in the midst of a terrible tsunami. To escape the waters polluted by shattered boats, Vega leads Deneb into unfamiliar open sea. Alone and hungry, the young siblings encounter a spectacular giant whale and travel briefly with shark-hunting orcas. Trusting her instincts and gaining emotional strength from contemplating the vastness of the sky, Vega knows she must lead her brother home and help save her surviving family. In alternating first-person voices, Vega and Deneb tell their harrowing story, engaging young readers while educating them about the marine ecosystem. Realistic black-and-white illustrations enhance the maritime setting.
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale. (maps, wildlife facts, tribes of the Salish Sea watershed, environmental and geographical information, how to help orcas, author’s note, artist’s note, resources) (Animal fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-299592-6
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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