Mr. Penguin and the Catastrophic Cruise

August 15, 2020
Feathered fussbudget Mr. Penguin and friends return in a third middle-grade adventure, tossing every nautical trope into a gleeful omnishambles. The celebrated Mr. Penguin has embarked upon a much-anticipated (and, he hopes, very nonadventurous) luxury cruise with his devoted chums Colin, a kung fu-fighting spider; Edith Hedge, a usefully equipped human; and Gordon, a very peculiar pigeon. Shenanigans inevitably ensue, and soon the quartet are up to their eyeballs in coded messages, possible pirates, steampunk mechanisms, and pantoworthy disguises--not to mention a mysterious island, a sea monster, a trench-coated secret agent, and red herrings galore. It's all gloriously silly, as the (extremely British) humor runs the gamut from groan-inducing puns to subtle meta-textual drollery; but the twisty roller coaster of a plot doesn't lack for genuine suspense. The pear-shaped Mr. Penguin--prone to panic and a fish-finger sandwich aficionado--is a delightful protagonist, and each of his companions (yes, even Gordon!) gets an opportunity to save the day. The over-the-top cast is cheerfully varied, with several human characters of color. The copious black, white, and orange illustrations reminiscent of Quentin Blake lend the story a daffy verve, and the short chapters with cliffhanger endings make for a perfect read-aloud. Readers need not be familiar with earlier volumes to appreciate this one. Ridiculously charming. (Adventure. 6-11)

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