Frank Cammuso

I really enjoyed the first Salem Hyde book, enough that I'll break my rule of never reviewing sequels and review this one!

Salem and her cat Whammy (he's a companion, not a pet, thankyouverymuch) sorted out much of the growing pains of their initial meeting and relationship in the first book, so now they can relax into their latest adventure...birthday drama! Salem's first misadventure, on the very first page, is a hint at what's going to happen later on in the story and the lesson she show more learns; bigger isn't always better.

Salem's best friend is having a birthday party and Salem just has to get him the perfect gift. And what is the perfect gift? Why, the one that will show up snooty Shelly of course! When Shelly makes fun of Edgar and his party, Salem tries to cheer him up by making it the BIGGEST party ever! But bigger isn't always better...or is it?

The art in the first book was black and white with touches of green shades; as you can guess from the cover, this book's second shade is pink. The art is classic cartoon style with exaggerated expressions, Looney Tune eyes, and lots of wild gestures. Cammuso shows just how effect black and white art with just a blush of color can be as he tells a fun story with a light touch.

The plot of the birthday and Salem's "lesson" is sidetracked continually by Salem's misadventures, shopping observations, and finally the surprise twist of Edgar's reaction to the birthday spell, but it's all in good fun. Beginning reader's will have a giggle over this quick read and comic fans will enjoy a little light relief.

Verdict: Fans of Calvin and Hobbes will enjoy the snarky sidekick and skilled comic art; fans of Jill Thompson's Magic Trixie will enjoy the magical mishaps; fans of Babymouse will like the friendship and school trials of Salem, not to mention the suspicious teacher. There's plenty in this quick read to enjoy and it's definitely worth adding to your library collection although it's not a stand-alone and you'll need to purchase the first volume if you haven't already.

ISBN: 9781419710254; Published 2014 by Amulet/Abrams; Purchased for the library show less

Four years ago Edison's dad gave him a flashlight to scare away the monsters in the dark, went out to help a friend... and never came back. The story really begins when Edison and his annoying little sister Tess (Tesla) and Tess' hamster Scuttlebutt have to spend the night with their weird Uncle Earl, an exterminator. When Uncle Earl gets an emergency call, the two quickly discover that he isn't exterminating just bugs - and the creepy story he told them about the monsters on the other side show more of The Night Door is true! Edison finds himself traveling through the dark and dangerous Underwhere, battling monsters with his flashlight and trying to save his sister (and her hamster) as well as the whole world from being overrun with monsters! He makes an unexpected friend and gets hints of many secrets before the Night Door is closed... forever?

Cammuso's distinctive cartoons, with old-fashioned Disney-style characters that sport big noses, large eyes, and lumpy hair, will draw in readers who were fans of his previous series, Dodgeball Chronicles and Misadventures of Salem Hyde. Red-headed Edison and Tesla sport skinny, stick-like legs and arms and the monsters they face, ranging from one-eyed black globs to dragons and blobby, colored creatures will give readers a little thrill without being too frightening.

The book passes quickly over Edison's father's disappearance and although his journey into the mysterious blackness is scary, it's more "monsters under the bed" scary than "monsters potentially eating your guts" scary. There's plenty of humor with Scuttlebutt's antics and Tess's determination to do exactly what she pleases, and although the Night Door closes at the end of the first volume there are plenty of hints that it hasn't closed forever, from his monster friend Knox's past to the hint that his father may be trapped in the dark.

Verdict: Readers who like fantasy adventure but aren't ready for the more intense action and emotional punch of Amulet or Bone will happily settle down with Edison and his monstrous adventures. This new series is sure to grab your graphic novel fans, both young and old.

ISBN: 9780425291924; Published October 2, 2018 by Viking; Review copy provided by the publisher; Donated to the library show less

A hilarious early reader graphic novel that riffs on The Ugly Ducking (and also a kind of backward Are You My Mother? or What do Tiggers like to eat?) when a dragon egg appears in a duck's nest. She treats it just the same as her three other chicks, but when this duckling (bigger than the others and bright pink) can't swim, a little bluebird takes it around to see what kind of duckling it might be. When a prowling dark wolf threatens the ducklings and other pond inhabitants, the dragon show more discovers its true identity to protect them. show less

Hard-boiled detective Max Hamm is awoken after midnight by a call from the police who, “called me to come down to King Cole’s Supper Club. My not so hard-boiled partner had an accident. When I got to the joint, there he was sunny-side up. All the King’s horses and all the King’s men couldn’t put Dumpty together again. For this one they were gonna need a spatula.”

This is LOL funny, a hilarious mix of Mother Goose, the Disney version of fairy tales, and classic hard-boiled show more detective fiction. It’s a comic stuffed full of puns, jokes, double entendre, and femmes fatale in the guise of storybook heroines. It’s as if Dashiell Hammett had rewritten Cinderella with the glass slipper substituting for the Maltese falcon and thrown Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs into the mix. show less