Shredderman: Meet the Gecko

Nolan is psyched when his dad is able to get him on the set of his favorite TV show, The Gecko and Sticky, and he is able to meet the show's star, Chase. There he learns Chase is plagued by a paparazzo named Joel aka "The Mole," who keeps writing falsehoods about the young actor. But luckily, Nolan also moonlights as Shredderman -- a vigilante who fights for truth and justice!

Apparently this is book three in a series, although I don't think you miss that much by starting here; Van Draanen explains enough about Shredderman's background for you to get the picture. The story itself is pretty slim and relies on a decent amount of dialogue, which means it would read fast anyway, but Van Draanen tries to amp up the pace with an excessive use show more of exclamation points. On one page alone, nine of the 15 sentences ended in exclamation points. But I have to admit this approach would probably appeal to reluctant readers, so that's a good thing.

There were some troubling stereotypes in this book, including that BOTH the main villains (the Mole and Nolan's playground bully) are described as ugly and fat (because conventional wisdom says only unattractive people are bad); the thieving gecko speaks with a terrible Mexican accent ("Ay-chihuahua. Ees theees the best you got?"); and girls are clearly second-class citizens who aren't good at math or science ("She put out a hand to help me, and I almost didn't take it. Superheroes don't need help from girls!").

Some of Nolan's superhero* actions are somewhat suspect, but I suppose all well's that ends well, particularly with Nolan realizing an important lesson: "How could I explain that the search for truth and justice wasn't just about getting even? It was about being bigger than yourself. Stronger than your weaknesses." That positive story redeems the book a lot, although I would recommend talking about some of the less positive parts of the story with your child to provide some context.

The book's black and white illustrations are in the large cartoon style of drawing that I don't like, but they likely appeal to the target audience.

*Note that Nolan being a superhero here really just means that he is good at using the Internet and some other technological gadgets. Some of the technology mentioned in the book is already dated. show less