Heart and weirdness in equal measure prove you should never underestimate the power of a lizard!
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them, as this monitor lizard soon learns.
Soon after Principal Wombat assures Zeke that she hasn’t selected him to be a hall monitor just because he’s a monitor lizard, he proves fairly inept at the job. He almost immediately punches local bully Pelicarnassus in the beak after a nasty encounter. Unfortunately, Pelicarnassus is the son of a supervillain, and after that fact is revealed, some of the wilder elements of this anthropomorphic school story come to the fore. For instance, because of an ancient family curse, the entire country of France appeared on Zeke’s knee after the death of his father. Ness clearly has a talent for balancing heart with mind-blowing silliness and whimsy. Such elements combine perfectly when Zeke’s mother, suffering from depression after the passing of Zeke’s father, is followed by a literal black dog at all times. All this is punctuated by Miller’s ink drawings of the characters, perfectly matching Ness’ equally deadpan recounting of the action. Yet in the end, it’s Zeke’s slow growth into a hero that will touch readers’ hearts, gargantuan pelican robot suits and tiny fighter jets notwithstanding.
Heart and weirdness in equal measure prove you should never underestimate the power of a lizard! (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9781536235937
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Walker US/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
PROFILES
The whimsy is slight—the story is not—and both its interest and its vocabulary are for the youngest members of this age...
Beverly Cleary has written all kinds of books (the most successful ones about the irrepressible Henry Huggins) but this is her first fantasy.
Actually it's plain clothes fantasy grounded in the everyday—except for the original conceit of a mouse who can talk and ride a motorcycle. A toy motorcycle, which belongs to Keith, a youngster, who comes to the hotel where Ralph lives with his family; Ralph and Keith become friends, Keith gives him a peanut butter sandwich, but finally Ralph loses the motorcycle—it goes out with the dirty linen. Both feel dreadfully; it was their favorite toy; but after Keith gets sick, and Ralph manages to find an aspirin for him in a nearby room, and the motorcycle is returned, it is left with Ralph....
The whimsy is slight—the story is not—and both its interest and its vocabulary are for the youngest members of this age group. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 1965
ISBN: 0380709244
Page Count: 180
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 16, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1965
BOOK TO SCREEN
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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