SPACE PIRATES AND THE MONSTER OF MALSWOMP

The food-loving computer and multispecies crew of pirate ship Sleepy Sheep land on planet Pancayke in search of hidden treasure. As in Space Pirates (2004), the quest takes them into a variety of mazes, which they navigate by following step-by-step instructions that will painlessly impart map-reading skills to the readers who follow along. Flanked by cartoon panels, the illustrations are done in a Where’s Waldo? style, thick with twisting passageways, humorous tiny details and heavy crowds. Locales range from the Sheepshovel Shopping Mall to the Spyderspit Sewers, and the crew suffers a nonstop series of disasters and narrow escapes as it makes its way at last to the treasure cave of Jellybrik, the green monster of Malswomp. Triumphing despite the best efforts of rival pirate Silverina Slyce, the Sleepy Sheepers jet off at last with a new treasure map in hand—leaving their audience a bit more practiced in finding compass points and following specific directions. The didactic purpose is well-disguised, though, beneath a barrage of silly names and cliffhangers. (Picture book. 6-8)