Middle School Bites 4

June 1, 2022
In his fourth outing, middle school multimonster Tom Marks does an old zombie a solid and just maybe launches a theatrical career amid thrills, chills, and lots of kissing. Tom has no intention of trying out for the school play, which is a thinly disguised version of "Beauty and the Beast" (in outer space) that was plainly written by the drama teacher with him in mind as the beast. Nonetheless, he finds himself dragooned into the role...and minding it considerably less when he discovers that he gets to kiss the lead--or actually her understudy, as the original lead turns out to be prejudiced ("he's not normal...he's a Vam-Wolf-Zom") and quits. Meanwhile, the pheromones fly as he gets more smooches, including from Martha, the 244-year-old teenage vampire who originally bit him. As further proof that he's not one to hold a grudge, Tom also frees the zombie who infected him from an abusive carnival barker and delivers him to a secret free-range zombie refuge. Banks tucks in plenty of byplay, from bits of outhouse tipping and bully deflection to encounters with a skunk and with the menacing shape-shifter who bit Tom back in the first episode, as he sets the stage for a bravura on-stage performance and follows up with the customary startling development to lead into the next outing. In the monochrome scenes Fearing supplies for nearly every spread, Tom, his family, and the various monsters present White, but his classmates show a range of skin tones. Mostly about the laffs, but not entirely, what with some weighty issues rising up. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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December 1, 2019

Gr 4-7-When 11-year-old Tom Marks is bitten by a bat, a wolf, and a zombie, his plans to survive middle school by flying under the radar are dashed. On his first day of school, the sun feels burning hot, he finds himself howling in chorus, and he has a strange craving for blood. Tom realizes that being a vam-wolf-zom has some advantages, but will superhuman strength, hearing, eyesight, and speed save him from notorious bully Tanner Gantt? And how will he fit in at school once his monstrous secret is revealed? This new novel by the head writer of SpongeBob SquarePants combines typical middle school angst with a hilariously over-the-top monster movie premise. Likable, funny Tom dreams up far-fetched visions of the future. Black-and-white cartoon drawings by Fearing ramp up the humor. The cliffhanger ending ensures that there will almost certainly be a sequel. VERDICT With its enjoyable characters and wacky concept, this novel is sure to have wide appeal.-Ashley Larsen, Pacifica Libraries, CA

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2019
Grades 4-6 Middle school arrives and Tom has plans?for everything from getting a girlfriend to staying invisible. But they all go out the window when he's bitten by a bat and a strange dog and then scratched by a decayed sideshow exhibit on the last day of summer vacation. Suddenly he's got a supersensitive nose, superstrength, pointy ears, an aversion to sunlight, and a thirst for blood?yes, he's turning into a Vam-Wolf-Zom. Subverting expectations in this set-up volume, about the only character who responds predictably to his eventual full-moon transformation is his drama-queen older sister; while she barricades herself in her bedroom with garlic, crosses, and a plastic stake, his parents just give him a pass on the family's vegetarian diet, his school principal delivers a speech about inclusivity, and his friends and odd locker mate Abel (pretty certainly more than he seems) take it in stride. Fearing adds images of pop-eyed cartoon monsters and middle-schoolers to almost every spread, capped by a startling twist at the close to set up further misadventures. A fang-tastic kickoff.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)