The Case of the Missing Marquess

I was never an avid reader of mysteries when I was younger, but now I find myself drawn to them time and time again. The Case of the Missing Marquess is one of the best I have come across in a while!

Imagine your mother leaving you. On your birthday. With not so much as a goodbye. This is the situation that Enola is facing.

Enola's mother is not the typical Victorian mummy. She does not see why Enola should be corseted up, and thinks that she can do perfectly well without male companionship. She even named Enola because of this (Enola is alone backwards).

Once it is clear that Enola's mother is not to return, the girl summons her much older brothers for advice. Mycroft and Sherlock. Perhaps you have heard of one of them?

That's right. Enola's brother is none other than Sherlock Holmes. If he can't find Enola's mother, who can?

There are more mysteries within the story than just the missing Mrs. Holmes, but this is the story that crosses the entire book. (And into the next, I am sure). The beauty in this title is in the details. Chock full of feminist thought, class issues, as well as adventure, The Case of the Missing Marquess is an easy sell to mystery aficionados, but a likely crossover to those kids who like adventure as well. And maybe a small sized step to take before some Sherlock Holmes!

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Hugo lives in the train station in Paris, and is the time-keeper. The only thing is, nobody knows. After his own clockmaker father died in a tragic fire, Hugo's gruff Uncle pulled him out of school, and made Hugo his own time-keeper apprentice. Hugo's uncle starts disappearing for longer and longer stretches of time, until one day, he doesn't come home at all.

What can Hugo do, but continue setting the clocks, and living in Uncle's tiny apartment in the station? He collects Uncle's paycheques so that the Station Inspector is none-the-wiser to the situation.

Everything changes for Hugo when one day, while stealing a wind-up mouse from the toy booth, he is caught. The man who runs the toy booth threatens to call the Station Inspector and takes from Hugo the one thing that he has left from his father - his notebook with the illustrations of the automaton that his father found in the museum attic. The man who runs the toy booth, and Hugo, are connected in a way that neither could fathom. With twists and turns too intricate to describe, Selznik takes readers on a journey about history, cinema, and the meaning of family.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret looks like a daunting book. It is as thick as J.K Rowling's works. The pages of Hugo, however, are filled with Selznick's amazing illustrations that call to mind the work of Chris Van Allsburg. Part of the story is actually told through the illustrations, quickening the pace of reading considerably. A beautiful and enchanting story that is destined to become a classic.

The Aurora County All-Stars

I love Deborah Wiles' stories. The Aurora County All-Stars is no exception! She has this incredible way of making me feel the small town in such a way that makes me yearn for a sleeping porch, and want to start canning some fruit!

This is a story about baseball, poetry and family. House Jackson is sitting in the room with 88 year old Mr. Norwood Rhinehart Beauregard Boyd when he takes his last breath. House calls the town doctor, and then high tails it out of there. Why did he leave so quickly, and what was he doing there in the first place?

House's first love is the baseball team that he and best friend Cleebo Wilson head up. Every year they have one official game against the team from the neighbouring county. Last year House had to miss the game. His arm was broken, you see. Broken because of none other than Frances (call me Finesse) Schotz and her modern dancing. This year, House is ready and he can't wait for the game.

But the town Mamas have another plan. They want all of their sons and daughters to be in a pageant celebrating the town's history, because golden son and soap opera actor Dr. Dan is coming back into town. And who is going to direct this play that just happens to fall on the same day as the annual baseball game? Miss Finesse Schotz, that's who!

What follows is a beautifully layered story about family history, death, memories, poetry and baseball. And all of the characters cast : House, Cleebo, Honey, Frances, Ruby Lavendar (!), Leonard, and all of the townsfolk, have a magic to them. This is a quiet sort of story that will stay with the reader for a long time.

Question

I have posted a question over at Booktopia.

I would love the take of any reader's over here as well!

Gilda Joyce: The Ladies of the Lake

Thanks to Brad, her mother's new boyfriend, Gilda is now all set to attend the swanky Our Lady of Sorrows private school. Gilda had wanted to apply on a whim. Now that the pink uniformed experience is right in front of her, she isn't sure she really wants to go!

After a tour of the school, she changes her mind. From creepy Velma Underhill, to the fact that the school looks like an old castle...there are things about this place that give Gilda that hair-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck feeling that can only mean this is the perfect place for a psychic investigator such as herself.

Turns out, one of the students drowned in the lake on campus 3 years earlier. Gilda knows that she is the one to solve this mystery. But what if there are girls around who do not want the mystery solved? Girls that may have had something to do with poor Delores' demise?

Add to the mystery Gilda's unwanted, school chosen big sister Marcie, her mom's loser boyfriend, and an English teacher with the amusing name of Mr. Pante (pantay....not panty!), and readers are in for another Gilda adventure that is sure to please. There is just something about Gilda that I love. She is her own girl, wonky yet somehow sophisticated.

I am definitely looking forward to more in this series.

Diary of a Fairy Godmother

Who can resist a cover like this?

Hunky Dory is, according to her mother, going to be the "wickedest witch wherever the four winds blow" . She is at the top of her class at Harbringer's Charm School for Young Witches. Not for long if Frantic Search has anything to do with it. That witch wants to take Hunky Dory down, and will stop at nothing to do so.

When Frantic gets wind of Hunky's soft spot for undoing spells, she exploits it by penning a wish fulfilling chain letter. Before Hunky knows what's what, she is out of her mom's home and on her own. And she is only one hundred years old!

So, Hunky is off on a search to find herself. Is she truly a witch at heart, or is she a bit more of a fairy godmother after all?

Esme Raji Codell has written a fun little romp of a fairytale send up. Any book that sites Hogwarts is okay with me. I wasn't sure if the witches name's would get to me (Hunky Dory, Frantic Search, Velvet Underground, Acid Reflux, Belladonna, Sinus Infection, Twisted Ankle), but after a bit of reading they didn't stand out as I had worried. Readers will recognize enough of the fairy tales to feel a connection, but will delight in Codell's departure from tradition.

Drazen Kozjan's illustrations are spot on, and if I were a tween, these girls would be doodles in the margins of most of my schoolbooks!

Home, and Other Big, Fat Lies

Whitney is trading in buildings for trees. She is headed from the city to Northern California, and foster home #12. #12 because of the top five complaints about Whitney from foster parents...

1. Big, sassy mouth

2. Too hyper

3. Doesn't always stick to the truth

4. Thinks she knows everything

5. Climbs everything (p.19)

A funny thing happens when she gets to her new school. There are 7 other foster kids in 6th grade alone. There is something about Forest Glen...the "downtown" is pretty much boarded up, and when Whitney hides in the closet listen to the social worker and her new foster mom talking, she gets the feeling that maybe she is just a paycheque after all. The logging industry that allowed Forest Glen to survive has been on the decline, in a large part due to environmentalist pressures.

Striker, her new foster brother, is very much an outdoorsy kid, and even though he threatens her, Whitney follows him into the woods. She has never felt so at home anywhere before. There's just something about the woods and the trees. Even the yellow banana slugs are kind of interesting if you pay attention to them! And there is one huge tree, Big Momma, that speaks to Whitney in a way that a city kid never imagined...scary but homey at the same time.

Soon Whitney is back in full foster mode. She has discovered over time that standing out is much better than blending in. Adopting her foster mom's nickname for her, Termite quickly tracks down the other fosters, and convinces them to take part in an after school science club. They explore the woods, and adopt a piece of highway to care for themselves.

All of a sudden, the down trodden parents of Forest Glen seem to be getting happy again. The kids soon learn that the logging is to start again. Looking at the maps, Big Momma is on the chopping block. Can a bunch of outsiders save a tree? Will the residents want to keep trouble making foster kids around once that $700 and change per month doesn't make such a difference?

I love Termite. She's an ADHD bundle of energy. She's annoying, loud-mouthed, and brash, but there is something endearing about her. She is a survivor, and really, she's got nothing to lose. She landed in the right family this time. Sometimes folks need a bit of shaking up.

I found this title by Jill Wolfson on the shelves of my local library, and will definitely be purchasing it for my school library. What a great companion to Joey Pigza, and a great read for girls or boys.

Plain Janes

Which PLAIN Jane Are You? Brain Jayne

You're the brain of your BFF operation, but don't feel cornered into being just a smarty pants -- you've got way more to offer the world (and your crush!).

Take This Quiz More Quizzes

Thanks, Liz!

The Garden of Eve

Evie is so angry with her father. They are in their truck, freezing cold, moving to a place that she has never seen, and her father is lost.

Her mother would know exactly where to go. She seemed to have a sense about her.

But she's not here. She's buried back home. And Evie cannot believe that her father wants to leave to move to a dead apple orchard.

When they finally get to Beaumont, they drive past a funeral. Evie is forced to remember the day of her mother's funeral. It was dark and gray, just like today. Evie notices someone who steps away from the crowd.

"The figure was a boy who looked to be about her own age, and he was

the palest boy Evie had ever seen. His skin was ghostly white against

the black of his coat and his pale hands were ungloved, making him

appear as if hands and face were all there was to him." pp. 16-17

Who is this boy, and why does Evie keep seeing him in the cemetery behind her house?

What follows is a heartbreaking story filled with magical realism and poignancy. Evie is on a quest of sorts to work through her own grief and salvage a relationship with her father. The town of Beaumont itself is broken as well. Can Evie's belief in magic help the people she hasn't yet met?

This is a very special book for deep and thoughtful readers. You have to be willing to delve into a fairytale of sorts, or it most likely will not work for you. Personally, I found this title staggering in many ways.

The Babysitting Wars

Kaitlyn, Maggie and Liesel are best friends. They have lived in Marshfield Lake forever, and each are known for something special. Maggie is a super athlete, Liesel is a great artist, and Kaitlyn is a fantastic babysitter, who just happens to have a bit of a competitive streak.

One day at lunch, Maggie invites new girl Nola over to their lunch table. Nola's from L.A. and you can definitely tell. Her clothes are always perfect and there is something competitive about her that Kaitlyn doesn't like.

Kaitlyn definitely decides that Nola is not to be liked when she not only starts taking over Kaitlyn's babysitting gigs, but is also seen nose to nose with resident hottie Topher Walker.

How far will Kaitlyn go to one-up Nola? How long can her friends stand her blowing them off in the name of competition?

This is a super cutie patootie title that is a breeze to read. It's chock full of tween girl issues like crushes, being grounded, and friendship. Candy Apple seems to be Scholastic's latest tween series. And with a cover like this, how can it miss? Each title is written by a different author. This one is by Mimi McCoy, and there are others by Laura Dower, Francesco Sedita, Lisa Papdemetriou, and Lara Bergen. Perhaps you've heard of a couple of them?

I know come the fall, these will be in the hands for 4th, 5th, and 6th graders at my school.

Yay.

Summerhouse Time

Do you remember what it was like to be eleven? Truly in the middle.

Sophie is so excited that it is almost Summerhouse time again. That is when Sophie and her extended family make the trip to the Jersey Shore. She gets to be with her cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents, and just "be". Last year Sophie's older cousin Colleen gave her pedicures, and they spent so much time together...it was great!

This, however, is a very different year. Colleen doesn't want to share a room, paint her nails, or anything. She wants to be alone. Sophie's little cousin Tammy is delighted to be sharing with "Soapy". Sophie is not so sure about all of this change.

Nor is she sure about the changes she is noticing in her dad. Or the changes between her aunt and uncle. Nothing is the same.

Summerhouse Time is a dreamy little story about change and family. Told in free verse, Spinelli must be calling to her own childhood. Sophie's voice is so authentic, and her feelings are right there on her sleeve. From her first real crush to her lingering resentment of her family's less-is-more philosophy, Sophie is a character that stays with the reader, and we are priviledged to share her eleventh summer with her!

A great choice for the thoughtful reader.

Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star

So, it's been a year since Kendra and Seth have lived at Fablehaven with their grandparents and discovered that their home is really a preserve for all types of magical creatures. School will be out in a week, and Kendra is looking forward to a bit of time off. Everything seems fine until a new boy named Case shows up. All of Kendra's friends think Case is hot, but the kiss of the fairies has left Kendra with the ability to see Case for what he really is...a hideous, deformed magical creature of some kind.

Kendra has to tell Seth. Who else would believe her? Before the two of them can decide what to do, Errol shows up. Errol claims to be a friend of their grandfather, and possesses enough information to make Kendra and Seth believe he is just that. But after Seth and Kendra help Errol provide the means to send Case packing, grandpa calls up and lets them know they've been fooled. And that it's time for them to come back to Fablehaven.

While the first installment of the series was dark, Rise of the Evening Star seems almost more so. When the kids arrive, grandma and grandpa are living with 3 specialist who are supposedly helping to bring down the society. Coulter, who has been grandpa's friend for years, specializes in magical relics. The massive Tanu is a potions specialist. And Vanessa is learned in weapons and magical creatures. Dale and Warren are still on the compound. And soon, it is clear, that there is a traitor among them.

Who can Kendra and Seth trust? Who really wants the best for Fablehaven. Why are the fairies so mean to Kendra? And what new horrors lurk in the woods?

Brandon Mull can write one heck of a scary story. The plot flies along as the kids get into adventure after adventure. These books are truly exciting, and I found myself seeking out quiet spots whenever I could get in a few chapters. It's going to be so hard to wait for the third installment, but in the meantime, I will pick up Mull's stand alone The Candy Shop War to tide me over.

Fans of Horowitz's Alex Rider should love Fablehaven. Fast paced with enough gore to satisfy any reader!

Kiki Strike: The Empress's Tomb

Woot!

I have to thank Karyn for picking this up for me at BEA. I couldn't believe it when I realized that not only had I missed seeing Kirsten Miller in person, but I totally missed picking up the ARC as well. Ugh.

So. Kiki is back. All of the Irregulars are now 14 years old (except for Iris, of course, who is 11). We start the story with a bunch of animal releases in NYC and giant squirrel murals painted around town. The press immediately blames Kiki, but Annanka knows better...Kiki can't even draw!

The main meat of the story is Oona's this time. Oona has been keeping a secret from the other Irregulars. She's not an orphan like they all had thought. Oona knows her dad. He's none other than Lester Liu - crime boss and smuggler. Lester was never interested in having a daughter so he left Oona with some women from one of his sweatshops. All of a sudden, Lester is taking an interest in Oona...and her band of friends. He says he's gone legit. He says that he wants to be a philanthropist. He says he wants Oona in his life. And Daddy's also sending gifts...in the form of diamonds and designer clothes. It seems that he might just know his daughter afterall.

What do the other girls think of Oona's budding relationship with her dad? Can you say "traitor"?

Another adventure filled with twists and turns, NYC geography and history, wonky families, and girl power! The Irregulars are older now, and the problems get more sophisticated as well. To be honest, this was a bit of a slow starter for me. I was tripping over some language at the beginning. But once the story got into full swing, I was hooked once more! (Stayed up til 3:00 a.m. just to finish!)

I'm looking forward to the next installment! And I think these books would make an EXCELLENT movie. Can you imagine?

Candyfloss

I picked up this gem of a book at BEA this spring.

Floss, a.k.a. Flora, is having a birthday. When she wakes up, her mum, step-dad Steve, and half-brother Tiger (a.k.a. Tim) are in her room, giving her gifts. She gets five gifts, all wrapped in lovely pink and silver paper. Her mum always makes things look so nice. "Hurry up", she is told. Floss receives an outfit (a pair of jeans and a pink top with a koala on it), blue trainers with pink laces, gel pens and stationery, a pink trolley style suitcase, and a cuddly animal (kangaroo with a joey). Sense a theme?

Then Floss' mum drops the bombshell. They are moving to Sydney, Australia for Steve's new job.

The full impact takes a moment to hit Floss. What about her dad? She sees him on weekends and helps out at his greasy spoon cafe. He may not be as successful as Steve, but in Floss' eyes, he can do no wrong. But mum insists that Floss come to Australia, and she even makes Floss do the deed of telling dad about the move.

At the same time, she can feel her best friend Rhiannon pulling away. Rhiannon's not very nice, but Floss desperately wants to remain best friends. Even when Rhiannon is so mean to Susan Potts who seems pretty interesting to Floss.

What follows is a story of parents who don't always do the best thing, friends who aren't so friendly, chip butties, and believing in oneself.

Jacqueline Wilson is such a great writer for tweens. She really gets that stuck feeling that so many kids have. Her characters are authentic, and the story flows along effortlessly.

A fun summer read!

The True Meaning of Smekday

I picked up this gem at BEA this year, and I was excited and nervous at the same time. I LOVE, love, love Adam Rex's illustrations and his picture books, and I was wondering how he would translate over to novels.

Well, what a bunch of wasted nervousness!

Gratuity Tucci lives with her wacky mom. She tries to keep her mom on track, and like many only children, she seems older than her years. Then one day her mom starts acting really weird. More so than usual. Gratuity notices a mole on the back of her mom's neck, that has turned purple and is now glowing. Her mom keeps saying random words. She heads out the door into the snow, and is quickly sucked up by a spaceship. Yes, a spaceship.

So, now it's just Gratuity and her cat "Pig". They need to travel South. It seems that the aliens (called the Boov) have left humans the state of Florida. Instead of taking a rocketpod, Gratuity decides that she will drive down to Florida. Her car breaks down along the way, and she and Pig run into a Boov named J.Lo at a convenience store. He's not like the other Boov, however, and he offers to fix up Gratuity's car in exchange for a ride down to Florida. Can Gratuity trust a Boov? Especially one named J.Lo?

What follows is a rip-roaring tale that is part science fiction, and part scathing social commentary. Rex peppers the text with his signature illustration and uses the evolution of the Boov to parody our own existence on Earth.

This book is next to impossible to blurb because there is SO much going on. Themes of friendship, racism, celebrity worship, and power are woven in seamlessly. This is a very different book, but different in a good way.

One of our students read it before school ended and she said, "Stacy, you HAVE to read Smekday! It's a little hard to get into at first, cuz it's so weird. But stay with it because it is AWESOME!" I think she had the right idea!

Fablehaven

I admit it. I saw the title of this book and just wanted to read it. I am a wordy girl, and I love the way "Fablehaven" looks and rolls off my tongue. Then, when I was at Book Expo, and Brandon Mull handed over a signed copy of the second installment, I was off to B&N for a copy of the first.

Wow!

I cannot believe this is a first novel.

Kendra and Seth's maternal grandparents just suffered an untimely death and their wish was that Kendra's parents and all of the adult siblings go on a Scandanavian cruise! Kendra and Seth are to go to Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson's place for a two week stay. The kids have hardly ever seen the Sorenson side of the family, and when they do, Grandpa and Grandma are rarely together. Kendra thinks they may be secretly divorced!

When the kids arrive, Grandpa and his help are the only ones there. Grandma is apparently off visiting a sick relative. Grandpa leads the children to the attic where they will be staying. It's bright and sunny and is filled with toys for the children to play with, art projects to begin and puzzles to solve. There is even a pet chicken to take care of!

Then Grandpa lays down the rules. No going in the barn. Ever. No going into the woods. Lots of ticks, he says. There is a lovely pool, and a gorgeous garden with loads of butterflies and dragonflies. Kendra is appeased by the pursuits provided, but not Seth! He takes his emergency kit, and heads for the woods. He figures he can pull off any ticks he sees. The path in the woods leads him to something he doesn't expect. A cabin of ivy. Inside is an old woman, with matted hair. She smells foul and is chewing on a rope. After being invited in repeatedly, Seth gets spooked and begins to run home. He can hear something pursuing him, but he sees nothing.

Kendra, meanwhile, is figuring out the puzzles left in the attic. At the end of the puzzle is the command "Drink the milk". She knows that this must refer to the milk that Grandpa's helper Dale was leaving at the edge of the forest for the butterflies. Kendra, ever timid, gets Seth to do the deed.

Their lives are about to change.

These are not butterflies in the garden, but fairies! And there are not ticks in the forest, but magical creatures of all sorts. Good and evil. That is why Grandpa Sorenson, who is the caretaker of this preserve, has so many rules.

Midsummer's Night is just around the corner, and Grandpa says that anything can happen on that magical night. Seth, per usual, doesn't take the warning seriously, and soon there are serious consequences.

This is a heart-thumping page turner! I loved it from the get-go. The descriptions are lush without being too wordy, and the plot plays like a movie in the reader's mind. Kendra is a remarkable character, and seeing her grow is a pleasure.

I cannot wait to dive into the second installment!

If A Tree Falls at Lunch Period

"This is lame but I'm actually looking forward to school this year, because every day this summer was like crap: dog crap, cat crap -- I even had a few elephant crap days. Trust me, it was bad."
Kirsten's had a rough summer. Best friend Rory is away in Maui, and Kirsten's parents have been fighting, fighting, fighting. In the midst of all of this, Kirsten has managed to put on 30 pounds. She can't wait to get back to Mountain and get back to normal.

But what is normal, anyway?

For Walk, this is his first year at Mountain. Before that, he went to City. When he took his test at Mountain School, they paired him up with Matteo. They ended up being friends, but sometimes Walk wishes Matteo was black instead of Mexican. Walk doesn't like being the only black kid in his grade. Walk is amazed when he notices that Matteo shuts down every time that uber rich Brianna has anything to say to him.

What can Walk and Kirsten possibly have in common? More than you think.

Told in alternating chapters, the stories of these two kids weaves about and intersects. Interestingly, Choldenko has Kirsten's story in first person, and Walk's in third. This is a powerful tool, and I can only speculate on what she was trying to do with this. To me, it speaks to privledge. Of course, rich, white Kirsten gets to tell her own story, where African American Walk who has just entered to tony world of private school has his story told. Maybe I am way off base, but everytime I started one of Walk's chapters I had to pause and get my bearings. Hmm.

I was lucky enough to attend a luncheon with Gennifer Choldenko during Book Expo, and she let us know where this story came from. The frightening amount of racism that gets couched in class priviledge is astounding.

This is a quick read that would make for some amazing classroom discussions about social justice, racism, and classism.

The Mother-Daughter Book Club

Emma, Jess, Megan and Cassidy are all in the 6th grade. Bookish Emma, and farmgirl Jess are friends. Emma and Megan used to be friends until Megan's dad struck it rich and she and her fam moved out to Strawberry Ridge. That's when Megan started hanging out with Becca and her girls. They are truly mean. And poor old Cassidy. What do you do when your mother's a retired supermodel, and your favourite thing is hockey?

Enter the mothers.

During yoga class one day, three of the moms decide that what they need to stay close to their tweenifying daughters is a book club. A Mother Daughter book club. The first title that they will take a year to discuss is Little Women, and they will surprise the girls with the whole thing.

But, these girls wouldn't hang out if you paid them, so how can this possibly work?

What follows is a deliciously clean (as they say these days) story about girl's friendship, family and life in a small town. The four families vary in income and structure, so most readers will find someone to identify with. Told in alternating voiced chapters, Heather Vogel Frederick has written the classic growing pains story that has wide appeal. Heck, even the moms will want to read it!

8 things meme

I've been tagged, by Midwestern Lodestar!

Each participant lists eight facts/habits about themselves. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning of the post, before those facts/habits are listed. At the end of the post, the player then tags eight people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1) I am Canadian...I'm sure you can tell by my spelling!

2) I am a huge fangirl when it comes to authors...one of the best things about living in NYC is the author quotient.

3) I am a fan of cheesey '80s music. I can now admit it, since I was too "alternative" to like the likes of Depeche Mode back in the day!

4) My curry rocks!

5) I am a master procrastinator.

6) My daughter is obsessed with Cinderella...my feminist sensibilities are distressed by this.

7) I have too many shoes.

8) I have too many books. (Is this possible? According to my husband it is!)

Everyone I know has been tagged? Instead of retagging, I will tag a couple. Joey! Deb.

Amelia Rules! What Makes You Happy.

Amelia is back, with her gang of superheroes and ninjas. This time she is working on figuring out why everyone is being so nice to her. Even the obnoxious triplets! Then she realizes that her Aunt Tanner's old music career is suddenly getting lots and lots of attention. The thing is, Tanner never talks about her life as a musician. Amelia does some investigating and snoops through her mother's things to try and figure out why Tanner is so quiet about the whole thing.

While this is happening, of course, there is superheroe / ninja drama. Kisses are had, Mary Violet becomes Ultra Violet, and Reggie is drunk with power!

Can I tell you, how much I LOVE these books? Jimmy Gownley does a superb job of writing and drawing such a smart comic. There is adult appeal, but not in an uncomfortable way. (The drawing of Courtney Love is priceless!) The history of the characters is found in comic strips mirroring Peanuts, Doonsbury, and Dilbert. And real things are happening. Kids pick things up...they exist in this world with us, and Gownley just gets it. This is hands down my favourite comic for kids.

And he's a heck of a nice guy to boot. I had a bit of an embarrassing meeting with him at BEA, and he was gracious and lovely, and gave me and Jen signed copies to boot!