(4) 1-3 Superman Tales of the Fortress of Solitude series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio & Tim Levins. This new early-chapter-book series explains how Superman acquired specific souvenirs housed in his Fortress of Solitude. These books capitalize on superhero fandom, highlighting Superman's lonely exceptionalism and tragic past. Despite an unappealing format, with particularly strange spacing and small font, the series targets struggling readers using limited texts and serviceable digital illustrations. Each book includes discussion questions and writing prompts. Glos. Review covers these Superman Tales of the Fortress of Solitude titles: A Buried Starship and The Last City of Krypton.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) 1-3 Superman Tales of the Fortress of Solitude series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio & Tim Levins. This new early-chapter-book series explains how Superman acquired specific souvenirs housed in his Fortress of Solitude. These books capitalize on superhero fandom, highlighting Superman's lonely exceptionalism and tragic past. Despite an unappealing format, with particularly strange spacing and small font, the series targets struggling readers using limited texts and serviceable digital illustrations. Each book includes discussion questions and writing prompts. Glos. Review covers these Superman Tales of the Fortress of Solitude titles: A Buried Starship and The Last City of Krypton.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("KAH-RACK!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: Harley Quinn's Crazy Creeper Caper and Catwoman's Purrfect Plot.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("KAH-RACK!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: Harley Quinn's Crazy Creeper Caper and Catwoman's Purrfect Plot.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("ZWIIIIP!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: The Joker's Magic Mayhem, Scarecrow's Nightmare Maze, Clayface's Slime Spree, and Two-Face Face-Off.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("ZWIIIIP!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: The Joker's Magic Mayhem, Scarecrow's Nightmare Maze, Clayface's Slime Spree, and Two-Face Face-Off.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 1-3 Tales of the Batcave series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. This new early-chapter-book series explains how Batman and Robin acquired specific souvenirs housed in their secret headquarters. Despite some text design missteps, including particularly odd spacing and small font, these books capitalize on superhero fandom, using serviceable digital illustrations and the Batman franchise's characteristic humor and over-the-top plots. Each book includes discussion questions and writing prompts. Glos. Review covers the following Tales of the Batcave titles: The Clown Prince of Cards and Dino Death-Trap.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) 1-3 Tales of the Batcave series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. This new early-chapter-book series explains how Batman and Robin acquired specific souvenirs housed in their secret headquarters. Despite some text design missteps, including particularly odd spacing and small font, these books capitalize on superhero fandom, using serviceable digital illustrations and the Batman franchise's characteristic humor and over-the-top plots. Each book includes discussion questions and writing prompts. Glos. Review covers the following Tales of the Batcave titles: The Clown Prince of Cards and Dino Death-Trap.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("ZWIIIIP!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: The Joker's Magic Mayhem, Scarecrow's Nightmare Maze, Clayface's Slime Spree, and Two-Face Face-Off.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Batman & Robin Adventures series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Batman and the Boy Wonder defeat familiar foes in these accessible books. Simple story lines--featuring comic book–style sound effects ("ZWIIIIP!") within the text--combine with rapid pacing and playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and popular characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these Batman & Robin Adventures titles: The Joker's Magic Mayhem, Scarecrow's Nightmare Maze, Clayface's Slime Spree, and Two-Face Face-Off.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(4) 4-6 Comic Chapter Books series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Superheroes battle well-known foes in good-versus-evil scenarios. The lure of the occasional comics-style illustrations may be enough carrot for comics fans, though the formulaic stories lack depth and character development. Excessive use of sound effects ("FWOOOSH!" "KABOOM! KABOOOM!") is true to the comic-book genre. Back matter includes sketches and context questions. Glos. Review covers these titles: Prisoner of the Penguin! and The Real Man of Steel.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(4) 4-6 Comic Chapter Books series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. Superheroes battle well-known foes in good-versus-evil scenarios. The lure of the occasional comics-style illustrations may be enough carrot for comics fans, though the formulaic stories lack depth and character development. Excessive use of sound effects ("FWOOOSH!" "KABOOM! KABOOOM!") is true to the comic-book genre. Back matter includes sketches and context questions. Glos. Review covers these titles: Prisoner of the Penguin! and The Real Man of Steel.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(4) 1-3 DC Super Heroes series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. These three books present various superhero stories in chapter-book format. Simple story lines--featuring characteristic comic book–style onomatopoeia within the text--combine with rapid pacing and not-so-witty playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and familiar characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Superhero and supervillain glossaries are appended. Review covers these DC Super Heroes titles: Batman vs. Catwoman, Superman vs. Bizarro, and Supergirl vs. Brainiac.

Reviewer: Shara Hardeson

(4) 1-3 DC Super Heroes series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. These three books present various superhero stories in chapter-book format. Simple story lines--featuring characteristic comic book–style onomatopoeia within the text--combine with rapid pacing and not-so-witty playful banter for slight but entertaining reads. Snazzy colors and familiar characters will likely appeal to reluctant readers. Superhero and supervillain glossaries are appended. Review covers these DC Super Heroes titles: Batman vs. Catwoman, Superman vs. Bizarro, and Supergirl vs. Brainiac.

Reviewer: Shara Hardeson

(4) 4-6 DC Super-Villains series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. "Superman would persevere until the bitter end...where Lex would destroy him for good!" Three supervillains star in these action-packed page-turners, which may appeal to reluctant readers. After two-page profiles of the bad guys, the exclamation-point-heavy texts play out their good-versus-evil scripts. The colorful comic-book art also lacks nuance but matches the texts' energy. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these DC Super-Villains titles: Joker on the High Seas, Lex Luthor and the Kryptonite Caverns, and Black Manta and the Octopus Army.

Reviewer: Ariel D. Rosen

(4) 4-6 DC Super-Villains series. Illustrated by Luciano Vecchio. "Superman would persevere until the bitter end...where Lex would destroy him for good!" Three supervillains star in these action-packed page-turners, which may appeal to reluctant readers. After two-page profiles of the bad guys, the exclamation-point-heavy texts play out their good-versus-evil scripts. The colorful comic-book art also lacks nuance but matches the texts' energy. Discussion questions and writing prompts are appended. Glos. Review covers these DC Super-Villains titles: Joker on the High Seas, Lex Luthor and the Kryptonite Caverns, and Black Manta and the Octopus Army.

Reviewer: Ariel D. Rosen