Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
When the librarian asks a new student about his old school, John describes a place full of wild characters and even wilder adventures. Inside the castle-like building, teachers eat students, animals run rampant, history class involves a time machine, and the field trips are out of this world. Bordering each page are often hilarious "definitions" of items featured in Lorenz's frenetic scenes ("School bus-A terror-filled nightmare on wheels.... Life only gets worse from here on out"), which are sprinkled with speech bubbles. There's a dizzying amount of text and art on each spread-no shortage of fodder for readers whose tastes gravitate toward the strange and surreal. Ages 6-9. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-4-John, the new kid in school, is looking for an unexceptional environment because his old one was just the opposite. "My old school was really, really old. And kind of a hangout for ravens. It could be sorta messy." John's definitions of "Extraordinary facts" related to the various scenarios he describes are listed in glossary panels on the right-hand edges of the fantastical spreads. The pictures were created with watercolor, color pencil, pen-and-ink, and airbrush. Humanlike animals-"Anthropomorphism-The practice of thinking that your pet cat (or rat or rhino) has human qualities"-appear in the detailed visual feasts, which beg for inspection. Eerie surprises exist in the illustrations, and the glossary includes bathroom humor, outrageous comments on teachers, dark humor, and slang. The book's format adds to its appeal with varying fonts for the artwork, a consistent font for the story, and speech bubbles. An unusual picture book, for most libraries.-Mary Elam, Learning Media Services Plano ISD, TX (c) Copyright 2010. 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
New student John regales his classmates with tales of adventures at his old school where he time-traveled in history class and went on a field trip to the moon. The premise has promise, but it gets lost in the crowded pages featuring poorly proportioned illustrations and a tongue-occasionally-in-cheek glossary on each spread, which adds to the clamor. (c) Copyright 2011. 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.
