November 10, 2009

Lunch Lady Graphic Novels #1 & #2


202. Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute (#1) by Jarrett J. Krosoczka. 96 pgs. May 2009. This elementary graphic novel is the first in a new series that features superhero Lunch Lady who works in the school cafeteria until crime or devious plots against students bring her secret identity out of hiding to fight crime. In this book both The Breakfast Club and Lunch Lady discover a diabolical plot to replace all the nice teachers with nasty cyborg substitute teachers. Honestly, the plot was way out there for me and the villain's reasoning just didn't cut it. What I did like was Lunch Lady's sidekick, Betty, who was the equivalent of Bond's "Q" and worked in the boiler room making high tech devices for her out of kitchen utensils and food. The yellow and black illustrations are average and on the whole I find the book will probably be a pleasant brief diversion for kids but not anything special. 3/5


203. Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians (#2) by Jarrett J. Krosoczka. 96 pgs. Jul. 2009. I didn't particularly enjoy book 1 of this series so wasn't expecting much from book 2 but I found Lunch Lady more palatable this time around. Librarians around town have gathered forces and are planning world domination with the first order of business to rid the world of video games. The Breakfast Club and Lunch Lady are quickly onto their scheme and with the help of Betty's nifty gadgets it's time for a showdown. I found this volume to have more humour and the plot made sense, though I couldn't help thinking weren't the librarians the good guys, promoting reading over video games? Anyway, better than the first, got a few chuckles out of me and I think kids will appreciate the plot. Strange, but I find myself wondering why the book is dedicated to my old teenage heart throb Ralph Macchio ... 3.5/5

Nicola

1 comment:

Jessica said...

Ralph Macchio is the name of Jarrett's dog.