Grimmiss Island

January 1, 2016

Gr 3-6-A trio of witch doctors, in an attempt to create a companion for the tempestuous volcano goddess of their small island, summon Grimmiss, a small, Spanish-speaking, skull-headed spirit seemingly powered by jalapenos. Grimmiss woos the goddess instantly, and their resulting meet-cute amorousness causes a host of geological and mystical high jinks to ensue. Illustrated with a straightforward, minimalist cartoon style, the combination of skulls, fangs, and cuteness might turn off some readers, which would be a pity. Baltazar and Franco exhibit the same rapport here that made Tiny Titans (DC Comics, 2009) transcend continuity roots and made the crowd-funded Aw Yeah Comics! (Dark Horse, 2014) so successful. Nothing here is too threatening, including versions of the devil and the Grim Reaper, as they are placed with equal weight alongside characters like a pair of talking cacti, one relentlessly pessimistic and one as happy as a clam. This combination of blithe optimism and whimsical, off-hand circumstances creates absolutely ephemeral stakes and establishes no-frills character development but still features an utterly winning narrative. VERDICT Incredibly fun, full to the brim with both sly and obvious gags, and sure to win over almost any reader.-Benjamin Russell, Belmont High School, NH

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2016
Grades 2-4 The kooky cover illustration of a skull-headed creature bursting out of a cauldron on Baltazar and Franco's latest collaboration is an apt harbinger of what lies within: wacky cartoon action, candy-colored characters of all shapes and sizes, and oodles of oddities. When the volcano goddess who rules their island threatens to blow the place to bits, two witch doctors conjure up Grimmiss, a skull-faced, Spanish-speaking, zippy little man, who quickly becomes the apple of the volcano goddess' eye. Their romance heats up the island literally, and soon Grimmiss must call on a yeti to help cool things down to a comfier temperature. Meanwhile, Hades is dismayed that things on the island have been so undisastrous lately, so he turns Grimmiss evil and, incidentally, into a French speaker. Though the depictions of witch doctors and tiki gods are unfortunate at best, the crazy antics, doodle-like characters, harebrained plots, and slapstick comedy will easily appeal to cartoon-loving kids. Hand to fans of James Kolchalka's Glorkian Warrior series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)