By Max Brallier, Illustrated by Douglas Holgate
Amazon rating: 4.8/5, grades 3-7
Good Reads: 4.12/5
Common Sense Media: parents 3/5, kids 5/5, ages 8+
4Rbooks: 5/6, grades 6-7
225 pages
Synopsis:
It’s tough enough being an orphan and going to 10 different schools in 13 years, but then the monster apocalypse comes, and Jack finds himself seemingly alone to fend for himself. Every where he looks and turns Jack finds monsters like the Dozers, the Winged Wretches, the Vine-Thingies, and worst of all, the Blarg who seems to be hunting Jack in particular. Oh, and the town is full of zombies. The adults have either escaped, are in hiding, or have become zombified.
Eventually Jack discovers that his best friend Quint and former bully Dirk are both alive. They join together to live and survive in Jack’s treehouse getaway and fight the zombies and monsters. The trio use Quint’s inventive brain, Dirk’s brawn, and Jack’s heroic instincts to outwit the evils rampaging throughout the town. They also pick up a friendly monster, whom they name Rover, as a pet. Their biggest quest is to find June, Jack’s wannabe girlfriend (she doesn’t know), and rescue her.
Parental Guidance: medium-low
Jack, an orphan, was left behind by his foster parents.
Cartoonish violence involving horrible monsters who want to kill and eat
the main characters.
Middle-school boy sense of humor about bodily functions.
Jack has a crush on June and deals with it in a condescending and
possessive manner at times.
Recommendation:
This was a fun, silly, adventurous graphic novel that I think many upper elementary and middle school students would enjoy, especially those who are into zombie, monsters, and action stories. Reluctant readers, boys in particular, might find this the type of novel that would keep their interest and inspire them to come back for more. The illustrations are fun and the dialogue in the pictures is part of the story. The team is a nice mix of heroic, brainy, and skillful. Science and smarts are utilized as often as physical attributes to keep the team safe.
It is the first in a series, so if a student found it fun and wanted more, there are 5/6 more books to go. It has also been made into a Netflix series. (warning, the reviews state that the TV series illustrations are more graphic than the novel)
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