  | Full Text Reviews: Bulletin for the Center... - 06/01/2016 The old clock tower on Odd Street won’t stop ringing during the night, which doesn’t particularly bother young Agatha Parrot (they live on Odd Street, after all). When Agatha’s pal Ellie wonders if it’s the work of a ghost and gets teased by school mean girl Gwendoline, however, Agatha gets riled up. After some spooky noises at the school and a few ghost sightings, Ellie’s far from the only one believing that the bells’ tolls might be a spirit’s doing, but some investigative work by Agatha and her pals reveal the culprits to be a bumbling janitor and some glow-in-the-dark breakfast food. Agatha’s narration vibrates with the incessant, energetic, out-of-breath tone of a kid just dying to tell a story, and though that tone certainly gives this British import enthusiasm and cheer, the pell-mell approach muddles the focus and makes for jarring plot transitions. The quirky cast of secondary characters adds humor, but there are so many players in motion that none of them stands out as truly comedic. Hargis’ black and white art lends the characters more distinction, giving frizzy verve to Agatha, sharp-eyed snark to Gwendoline, and bumbling goofiness to the janitor. Despite the story’s unevenness, Agatha’s pretty hard to resist as a protagonist, and readers will likely return for another jaunt down Odd Street. KQG - Copyright 2016 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Booklist - 07/01/2016 The mystery at the heart of this British import involves a ghost who may or may not be haunting the school at the end of the street—and who may or may not even be a ghost. Agatha Jane Parrot, extremely fond of ALL CAPS, leads an investigation into the cause of the school clock tower’s broken bell. Her classmates embrace the ghost as the catchall culprit for scholastic mischief and high jinks, while only halfheartedly accepting its existence, but seeing, it turns out, is believing. The truth is eventually proven to involve a box of disgusting cereal, the janitor, and the school turtle, and is sufficiently silly enough to amuse readers. Agatha’s narration is peppered with exclamations and sound effects, akin to those in Jonathan London’s Froggy books. The illustrations, created for the U.S. edition, are high-energy black-and-white caricatures, adding to the slapstick tone of the story. The text has been Americanized, but no translation was needed for the humor, which should appeal to fans of Goofballs and Ivy and Bean. - Copyright 2016 Booklist. Loading...
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