Billy Hooten

July 23, 2007
Comic book scripter and novelist (The Fallen quartet) Sniegoski launches the Owlboy series with this corny caper introducing a 12-year-old geek, Billy Hooten. When Billy responds to a cry for help emanating from a mausoleum, he finds Archebold, a tuxedo-clad goblin about to be flattened by a boar-like monster. When that creature slips on a pile of bones and is knocked unconscious, Archebold credits Billy for besting the beast and declares the boy the next Owlboy, a comic book crime-fighter. The goblin escorts the fledgling superhero (who wears a feathered costume, horned leather helmet and goggles) through a coffin in the mausoleum down to Monstros City, where he must complete a series of outlandish trials to officially assume the Owlboy mantle. With its loopy antics, throwaway quips and descriptions of Monstros City's outrageous residents (one resembles a praying mantis sporting a blond wig and miniskirt; another looks like an asparagus spear), this tale has silliness to spare. Ages 9-12.

September 1, 2007
Gr 3-6-Billy Hooten is a comic-book nerd who has been dubbed "Owlboy" by the class bully because of his last name and his big glasses. When he hears a cry for help coming from a nearby cemetery, Billy follows the voice into a crypt, where he meets Archebold, a goblin, and discovers that he is the next Owlboy, crime-fighting superhero of Monstros City, an underground world populated by every type of monster imaginable. Billy is amazed that his comic-book story is real and is not sure about being a superhero, much less donning the Owlboy costume, which doesn't fit. But after he completes a series of tests and discovers that he has some unusual powers when in Monstros City, he realizes that taking on the mantle of Owlboy is his destiny. He begins his adventures by catching the evil Slovakian Rot-toothed Hopping Monkey Demons. Sniegoski clearly knows his superhero stories and fills this book with tropes that hark back to Batman, Superman, and Spider-Man. Owlboy has an Owlmobile, but there are other more imaginative touches, such as a secret hideout called the "Roost" complete with a gadget-creating troll. This lively tale should be a hit, especially with reluctant readers. A few black-and-white sketches appear throughout."Tim Wadham, Maricopa County Library District, Phoenix, AZ"

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 20, 2007
Comic book scripter and novelist (The Fallen quartet) Sniegoski launches the Owlboy series with this corny caper introducing a 12-year-old geek, Billy Hooten. When Billy responds to a cry for help emanating from a mausoleum, he finds Archebold, a tuxedo-clad goblin about to be flattened by a boar-like monster. When that creature slips on a pile of bones and is knocked unconscious, Archebold credits Billy for besting the beast and declares the boy the next Owlboy, a comic book crime-fighter. The goblin escorts the fledgling superhero (who wears a feathered costume, horned leather helmet and goggles) through a coffin in the mausoleum down to Monstros City, where he must complete a series of outlandish trials to officially assume the Owlboy mantle. With its loopy antics, throwaway quips and descriptions of Monstros City's outrageous residents (one resembles a praying mantis sporting a blond wig and miniskirt; another looks like an asparagus spear), this tale has silliness to spare. Ages 9-12.

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.