Robot Zot!

Jon Scieszka

Book - 2009

On a mission to conquer planet Earth, tiny but fearless Robot Zot and his mechanical sidekick leave a path of destruction as they battle kitchen appliances.

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Location Call Number   Status
Children's Room jE/Scieszka Due Apr 13, 2024
Subjects
Genres
Picture books
Published
New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 2009.
Language
English
Main Author
Jon Scieszka (-)
Other Authors
David Shannon, 1959- (illustrator)
Physical Description
unpaged : ill
ISBN
9781416963943
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

Robot Zot, a tiny but deadly serious space droid, bravely crashes his Attack Ship into Earth. Robot Zot never fall. Robot Zot conquer all! he cries before stomping his way across the dangerous terrain of an American kitchen with Bot, his silent doglike companion. To Zot, everything looks like an enemy: the blender, the hand mixer, the coffee maker all must be destroyed! Even Earth's shiny Captain (the toaster) is blown to bits. But when Zot's gaze lands upon a child's toy phone, he feels a stirring of something quite different from destructive rage. It's love, and Zot will brave anything, even Earth's most fearsome Commander General (the family dog) to spirit his sweetheart off to space. Zot, drawn in extreme angles by Shannon as something resembling a demented gas pump with legs, is hilariously driven, grappling with vacuum hoses and accosting TV sets with intergalactic zeal. But it's Zot's broken robot-pidgin ( Who is talking large now? ) that will make this irresistible for role-playing read-alouds.--Kraus, Daniel Copyright 2009 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Scieszka and Shannon take a detour from their Trucktown series to pay homage to another object of childhood fascination. Robot Zot, a malevolent red contraption, crash lands "into the heart of the dangerous Earth Army" (a backyard) and makes his way into a fully equipped kitchen. There, it's revealed that Zot is about the size of an iPod. After fending off "attacks" from a toaster and a television, Zot faces his toughest challenge yet: rescuing the amazing "Queen of all Earth" (an attractive toy cellphone). He and his sidekick (a cross between a snail and a conquistador's helmet-one of a few references to the Quixotic nature of Zot's mission) save the queen and escape while a bewildered homeowner surveys the aftermath and blames his dog. Scieszka laces his action-filled narrative with rhymes and repetitive robot phrases ("Robot Zot-never fall./ Robot Zot-conquers all!"). Shannon's acrylic artwork offers bright colors and plenty of humor (a slightly anthropomorphized blender's white buttons fall out like teeth under Zot's attack). This comically self-deluded protagonist proves that fierce warriors of any size can still be brought to their knees by love. Ages 3-7. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review

PreS-Gr 2-"Robot Zot never fall/Robot Zot conquer all." Opening with an action soundtrack reminiscent of Star Wars, this animated version of the book (S & S, 2009) written by Jon Scieszka and illustrated David Shannon is a riotous rhyming adventure. When the brave and bold conqueror's spaceship lands on Earth, he unwittingly enters a suburban kitchen-through the pet door--ready for battle. Confronted with a menacing array of appliances-coffeemaker, blender, and eggbeater-he fearlessly zaps his foes, even the "shiny captain," a toaster. Entering the living room, a TV announcer accuses the six-inch wonder of having less than fresh breath with explosive results. The goofy red-and-yellow bot is modeled after a portable phone with a row of four white button-teeth and a slight overbite. When he happens upon the "Queen of all Earth"-a toy cell phone held prisoner by two large dolls-"For the first time ever, Zot feels something more than war in his machinery." After rescuing his princess, he must battle the family's slobbering large black dog, which, of course, gets blamed for the mess. Optional subtitles allow viewers to read along with the campy narration. The zany illustrations were meant for the big screen and offer an interesting lesson on perspective as viewers realize that the robot is several inches tall. An interview with Shannon traces the evolution of his career, his collaboration with Scieszka, and how he draws his characters. Simply out of this world!-Barbara Auerbach, P.S. 217, Brooklyn, NY (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review

(Preschool, Primary) Scieszka's dedication of his story to "Don Q. and Sancho P." indicates the mock-epic nature of Robot Zot's never-ending battle against the forces of evil. Accompanied by loyal sidekick Best Pal Bot, Robot Zot faces down such fearsome creatures as a blender, a coffee maker, and even his own Knight of the Mirrors -- a toaster. After dispatching -- spectacularly -- a television set, Zot finds his Dulcinea (a child's toy cell phone) and snatches her from the jaws of "Earth's most fearsome Commander General" (a black Lab puppy). The tension between the robot's clueless heroics and the domestic setting is made manifest in Shannon's acrylic illustrations, all down close at Zot's perspective, and our hero is appealingly rumpled and careworn -- somebody has loved this brave little guy. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

Robot Zot invades Earth, vowing to destroy all earthly enemiesmostly kitchen appliances, as Zot measures a whopping four inches high. Scieszka and Shannon combine forces to deliver an hilarious, action-packed picture book characterized by grandiose face-offs, monosyllabic robot rants and wham-bam-boom pacing. Boys finally get the unadulterated action, hyperbolic humor and punchy language (Zot challenges, Zot blasts, Zot scans!) they love. Boys and girls will giggle as the little robot misinterprets a familiar world, the suburban home, calling the toaster the "Earth's shiny Captain" and a baby's toy phone "the Queen of all Earth." They will identify with the diminutive droid as he alters the scope of everyday surroundings. The kitchen morphs into a vast battlefield, the backyard into a beast-infested wilderness. The vibrant illustrations capture Zot's skewed perspective and misguided heroics in freeze-frame shots. Bright oranges, reds and yellows dominate the otherwise metallic palette and provide tough colors for tough kids. Sophisticated comedy, challenging vocabulary and pithy writing offer undetectable, beneficial learning opportunities, like zucchini hidden in a yummy cupcake. Must...Have...Robot...Zot! (Picture book. 3-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.