Right from the start, I knew I had to check this one out. I mean, come on! It's written/illustrated by the creator of Claude (and we can't forget Sir Bobblysock!), and while, yes, for a slightly older audience than that particular series, it just gives readers young (and young at heart!) something to grow with. Now, this story is definitely filled with danger, mayhem, good guys and bad, mysterious thumps, and jungles that crop up out of nowhere, but all the twists and turns, all the highs and lows, all the progress and missteps, add up to one GRAND ADVENTURE...and really, that's all Mr. Penguin asked for! Paired with the ferociously fun story are some amazing illustrations and while sparse in color variety, the style and palette used make it instantly identifiable as Mr. Smith's work. Hey, it takes talent to make minimum spectrum images pack a punch, and these certainly do the job intended.

**copy received for review; opinions are my own ( )

I love several of Smith's picture books; could take or leave his Claude chapter book series, and, while I personally enjoyed it and thought it was funny, am doubtful about the audience for his latest book as well as having some concerns.

Originally published in the UK in 2017, this wacky book introduces the eccentric Mr. Penguin, who longs to be an adventurer and detective, but is hampered by his equally strong love of comfort (and lack of experience). However, when he gets a call from Miss Bones and her brother Montague, who need his help to find a treasure to save the Museum of Extraordinary Objects, he is on the case, along with his sidekick and assistant, Colin the spider! After many weird and wacky adventures, and with the help of their friend Edith Hedge "who lived in the park" Mr. Penguin successfully solves the case.

SPOILERS

It turns out that the real Miss Bones has been kidnapped and the Miss Bones and her brother Montague are two (male) villains, jewel thieves in disguise. I didn't care for the plot point of having "Miss Bones" be disguised as a woman and the only person of color is Edith, who is mostly pushed aside at the end (despite having really solved the case herself). As Kirkus says, it reinforces "dominant race, gender, and class norms". This is also pretty long for the theme and plot - a little over 200 pages - while the book reads much younger, about 2nd grade.

The main reason I'm attracted to this series is that it reminds me irresistibly of Angleberger's weird but oddly popular Inspector Flytrap and also Rider Woofson, which I don't care for myself but which has several dedicated readers. Mr. Penguin is longer and more challenging and certainly won't be for every kid, but I can see my Flytrap fans, who keep begging me for more books that don't exist, falling all over this one!

Verdict: Not for every kid or library, but if you have fluent young readers who like the weird and wonderful, with a side of goofy humor, this should go over well.

ISBN: 9781682631201; Published April 2019 by Peachtree; ARC provided by publisher