Zorgoochi Intergalactic Pizza

July 21, 2014
Pizza delivery has never been as dangerous or exciting as in this whimsical first novel from author-illustrator Yaccarino (Doug Unplugged), in which Luno, the scion of an ancient and respected pizza-making family, faces an enemy bent on taking over the pizza industry for an entire galaxy. To stop the dreaded Vlactron, Luno must travel through time, master the Zorgoochi Pizza Toss, learn the Whey of Life, and locate the long-hidden Golden Anchovy. Luno’s allies are a neurotic, sentient pizza oven and a hyper-intelligent mutated garlic clove, while his enemies include deadly calamari, legions of enslaved insects, and a fleet of heavily armed pizza delivery ships. Cheap jokes and bad puns fly fast and furious (at one point, Luno meets the Mozzarella Monks, practitioners of Tai Cheese) as Yaccarino cooks up an action-packed slice with everything on it, including the anchovies. The humor is decidedly goofy, but the story’s charming sincerity makes it a delight. Yaccarino’s loose, cartoony illustrations appear throughout, and the characters’ exaggerated features and gangly limbs befit the frenetic, action-adventure plot. Ages: 8–12. Agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House.

July 15, 2014
There's a party game writers play from time to time. They'll try to improvise a story based on the objects in front of them in the room. If Yaccarino was playing that game, he got carried away and threw every item in his house into this story.This book is so inventive that every chapter-and sometimes every paragraph-is crammed with ideas. Most of the ideas involve pizza, because the main characters work for Zorgoochi Intergalactic Pizza, which is locked in a battle for supremacy with Quantum Pizza. Readers will learn about the "teleportation device that delivered pizza using radio waves, the liquid pizza that filled you up and quenched your thirst at the same time, and the pizza seed that could be planted and harvested." Unfortunately, in his debut as a novelist, the author/illustrator is less inventive when it comes to plot mechanics. The characters make remarkably stupid decisions whenever necessary to advance the story. Any readers who shout "Don't go in the basement!" when they're watching a horror movie will scream themselves hoarse. The pictures, however, make up for any flaws in the narrative. The black-and-white ink drawings look like technical illustrations from a textbook from the far future. If clip art really were art, it would look like this. The story is not for everyone. The characters include a superintelligent clove of garlic and a walking pizza oven. Readers with quirky senses of humor can look forward to being surprised-and then surprised again a few paragraphs later. (Science fiction. 8-12)

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August 1, 2014

Gr 4-7-Zorgoochi Intergalactic Pizza has been a leading force in pasta innovation for more than 1000 years, from volcano-powered ovens to zero-gravity delivery boxes. Luno, 12, longs to continue the family tradition, but so far his inventions have been notably unsuccessful. Moreover, all of the family-run pizzerias of the galaxy are in trouble. The members of the independent Pizza Pyramid association strive to deliver fresh, hot food to hungry beings on far-flung worlds, but they are being overwhelmed by a giant chain operation. Quantum Pizza is undercutting their prices with cheap gimmicks and synthetic ingredients. Worse, the evil conglomerate is intercepting their ships and stealing their orders. When Luno sets out on his first interplanetary delivery run, he knows that the Zorgoochi family livelihood depends on a successful voyage. Unfortunately, the route includes stops on sizzling fire planets, frozen ice worlds, and a place where the carnivorous customers would rather eat him than the pizza-all the while dodging Quantum Pizza's laser-laden delivery rockets. Then Luno discovers that Quantum's megalomaniac CEO has bigger plans than just taking over the pizza trade. Vlactron is looking for the legendary Golden Anchovy that has the power to control the galaxy-and he believes that Luno can lead him to it. This wacky space adventure is stuffed with pizza puns and science-fiction allusions. Yaccarino's cartoons of weird space creatures, from robo-onions to the Yoda-esque Mozzarella Monks, are especially amusing. Similar in style to Jon Scieszka's "Time-Warp Trio" series (Puffin), but for a slightly older audience, this is a good choice for science-fiction fans with a taste for off-the-wall humor.-Elaine E. Knight, formerly at Lincoln Elementary Schools, IL

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2014
Grades 3-6 The Zorgoochi family make the best pizza in the universe, but now they, like all the pizza businesses, are fighting to survive the cutthroat tactics of megachain Quantum Pizza. Desperate to help, Luno Zorgoochi sets out on his first intergalactic pizza delivery with his two friends: Clive, a superintelligent mutant clove of garlic, and Chooch, a whiny, 32-galactic-ton pizza oven. Before they can say Saturnian Sausage, the trio is knee-deep in homicidal fungi, pizza-order poachers, and Mozzarella Monks. Can Luno stand the heat, rescue his dad, and defeat the evil Vlactron? This is picture-book-creator Yaccarino's first middle-grade novel, and it comes with everything; aliens, robots, time travel, and wormholes are just the beginning. There are a few too many recaps, and the story goes on a bit too long, but the splendid silliness carries the day. The humor is perfectly attuned to the intended audience, and the cliff-hanger twist at the end will have them phoning in for the next orderer, installment. Yaccarino's hilarious illustrations are the final delicious topping.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)