  | Let's get cracking! (Kung Pow Chicken) Author: Marko, Cyndi | |
| Price: $15.17 | ||
Summary:
Gordon Blue and his brother Benny, unlikely superheroes, must save Fowladelphia from Granny Goosebumps, who has filled the city with cookies that cause innocent chickens' feathers to fall off.
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: LG Reading Level: 3.00 Points: .5 Quiz: 165167 | Reading Counts Information: Interest Level: K-2 Reading Level: 2.60 Points: 2.0 Quiz: 53808 | |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (+) (10/15/13)
School Library Journal (03/01/14)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (03/14)
Full Text Reviews:
Bulletin for the Center... - 03/01/2014 After accidentally taking a dip in toxic sludge at their uncle Quack's laboratory, second-grader Gordon Blue and his little brother/sidekick Benny gain superhuman--er, superbird--abilities, becoming King Pow Chicken and Egg Drop. Let’s Get Cracking follows the novice superheroes as they search to discover why Granny Goosebumps is selling glowing cookies that, when eaten, cause the poultry population to shed their feathers in a dramatic “POOF!” Bok! Bok! Boom! sees our heroes trying to thwart evil Dr. Screech as he kidnaps opera star Miss Honey Comb, planning to use her voice to destroy the public library, as he has an aversion to quietude. The combination of chickens and kid superheroes is absurdly compelling; primary-graders will chortle over all the poultry puns, elementary-school humor (“Ack! Leotard wedgie!”), and Benny’s smart-aleck asides and frequent exclamation of “Ham and eggs!” Marko’s art is as playful as her text, and Gordon, in his square spectacles and striped tie, and Benny, who is still incompletely hatched and whose only visible features are his eyeballs (seen through a gap in his shell) and his protruding legs, are appropriately both comical and heroic in their depiction. There’s a graphic-novel flavor to the layout, with compositions ranging from double-page spreads to panel sequences (often set against a colored backdrop), while text blocks share duties with speech bubbles in telling the story. The simple vocabulary and small chunks of text make this extremely accessible to the primary-grade crowd, and kids who want something short and funny but are not quite ready for Pilkey’s Captain Underpants or Super Diaper Baby series will find this just their speed. JH - Copyright 2014 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.
School Library Journal - 03/01/2014 Gr 1–3—Gordon Blue and his younger egg brother, Benedict, gain superpowers after taking an accidental dive into giant vat of toxic sludge while visiting Uncle Quack's laboratory. Gordon, aka Kung Pow Chicken, and Benedict get an opportunity to put their powers to the test. A crowd of chickens at the Fowl Fall Festival is suddenly featherless, and glowing cookies found near the scene are suspected to be linked to the crime. Granny Goosebumps, selling sweaters to the featherless victims, is scheming for a way to raise enough money to move to Florida, but Kung Pow Chicken and his faithful sidekick, Egg Drop, step in to save the day. The story is heavily illustrated and the cartoon style pairs nicely with the story's overall feel. Dialogue appears in speech bubbles, and the frequent poultry plays on words are sure to elicit giggles from young readers. This first offering in a series will have broad appeal among independent readers who have outgrown easy readers but are not yet ready for books relying more on text than illustration.—Matthew C. Winner, Ducketts Lane Elementary School, Elkridge, MD - Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
