BONE

Bone: Out from Boneville by Jeff Smith

Citation: Smith, Jeff. Bone Out from Boneville. Scholastic, 2005.

Plot: Fone Bone and his two cousines, Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone, have been run out of Boneville due to Phoney Bone's greedy, money-making schemes. The Bone cousins are trying to make their way back to Boneville when they find a mysterious map in the desert. Soon they are all separated, eventually all making it down into a valley filled with weird creatures individually. Bone eventually meets a human girl named Thorn who plans to help him find his cousins and get back to Boneville. However, mysterious rat creatures are after the Bone cousins, trying to thwart their journey back. And for some strange reason? A Dragon is guarding Fone Bone, showing up at every corner protecting him from the rat creatures. Can the Bone cousins find each other and make it back to Boneville alive?

Review: I have arrived! This is what I pictured in my head when I thought of graphic novel. I found one that is popular and appears to be the right reading level. Thank you 7th grade students! Also, I like that the pages turn the correct way. Manga messes with my brain too much. I tried DragonBallZ and I failed. Anyways, I read Bone and I'm really confused about it. How can my middle school students get it, but I don't? Are these creatures actually bones? Why is there a dragon? What are the rat creatures? I know this is part of a series, so maybe it comes together if you keep reading. I don't really plan on it... but you know. I read this one. And that makes me proud. But the little Bone guy? Has a crush on a human girl. I'm pretty sure that is just wrong. 


Ages: 11 and up


Series: First volume in the Bone series


Similar Titles:


Amulet
Lunch Lady
DragonBallZ

 

Magic Pickle and the Planet of the Grapes

Magic Pickle and the Planet of the Grapes by Scott Morse

Citation: Morse, Scott. Magic Pickle and the Planet of the Grapes. Scholastic, 2008.

Plot: There is a magic, flying pickle that lives in a command center under Jojo's bed. The magic pickle was accidentally created in a lab accident, as was a bunch of other talking, animated produce. However, the pickle is the only that came out good, the rest? Well, they were all bad apples. Even if they weren't apples. Now it is the Pickle's job to round up all the bad produce and save the world. Unfortunately for Jojo, she's usually involved. In this edition, the Pickle must save Jojo's school from an evil raisin, attempting to turn everyone on the planet into a grape, starting with Jojo's class. Can the Magic Pickle and Jojo turn them back into kids and save the planet?

Summary: Yes, you read that all correctly. Magic Pickle. Evil Raisin. It sounds super ridiculous, probably because it is super ridiculous. The series is cracking 5th a 6th graders up, and has some pretty big vocab words in it. But you have to really be able to suspend logic to read it at all. It was hard for me to get through, as I thought it was terribly stupid. However, it is appealing to boys and girls alike, and younger tweens think it is funny. I read this one, but I definitely won't be finishing out the series. Talking pickle? Really?

Ages: 8 and up

Similar Titles:
Captain Underpants
Super Diaper Baby  

Night of the Homework Zombies

Night of the Homework Zombies by Scott Nickel

Citation: Nickel, Scott. Night of the Homework Zombies. Stone Arch Books, 2006.

Plot: One seemingly normal day Trevor Walton's class has a substitute teacher. However, after returning from a super long bathroom trip Trevor discovers that his entire class is LOVING homework and math and wanting more. They've been hypnotized, and Trevor is the only one not under the spell! The substitute is no teacher at all, but rather an escaped mad scientist attempting to make the world love science, math, and homework. Is it too late? Or can Trevor save his classmates from a lifetime of homework?

Review:
I grabbed this from a 5th grader during SSR because I saw that is said 'graphic novel' on the cover and I have been trying really hard to broaden my horizons and read graphic novels. I don't yet have a ton of experience with graphic novels, but I'm guessing that the reading level for this one is low. It looks like it would be better suited to 3rd or 4th grade rather than 5th or 6th grade, yet I had a lot of 5th grade boys reading it. I'm happy they're reading, and maybe it is the nature of the graphic novel to be an easier read, though I'm tempted to say this one is definitely reading down, even as far as graphic novels are concerned. However, it is a graphic novel with zombies, so I'd recommend it for a boy with a lower reading level that is refusing to read.


Ages: 8 and up


Similar Titles:
Captain Underpants
Super Diaper Baby
Magic Pickle

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk Kung-Fu Cavemen From the Future

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk Kung-Fu Cavemen From the Future by Dav Pilkey


Citation: Pilkey, Dav. The Adventures of Ook and Gluk Kung-Fu Cavement from the Future. The Blue Sky Press, 2010.

Plot: George and Harold, the same two fictional kids that brought you the homemade comic 'Captain Underpants' are at it again in their tree house. This time? They are writing about cave men. Ook and Gluk (who oddly resemble George and Harold) are cavemen. They befriend a dinosaur and are always getting into trouble with their Chief Goppernopper. Soon a Goppernopper from the future comes back to the cavemen times to pillage the Earth for resources. He befriends the cave Goppernopper, and the two start causing trouble. Ook and Gluk go through the time machine and learn Kung-Fu to come back and save their time. But will it be too late?

Review: The book is rife will spelling errors, and is definitely a graphic novel. I felt proud of myself for actually reading and understanding a graphic novel. Anyways, despite it possibly not appealing to adults, the book is hugely popular with young tweens, namely 5th and 6th grade boys from my observation. The whole cavemen, dinosaurs, fighting aspect is a huge hit, and I actually found a bunch of my 5th graders reading this book during SSR. It wasn't my favorite, but I appreciate anything that gets boys and reluctant readers turning the pages. The hilarious antics of Ook and Gluk seem to being doing just that.

Ages: 8 and up

Similar Titles:
Captain Underpants
Super Diaper Baby
Magic Pickle
Bone