(4) YA About to graduate from high school, Lily has a big secret: her dad and boyfriend are mermen. These aren't the creatures of fairy tales but mer-people on the brink of war, a war Lily herself must learn to fight. This installment doesn't stand alone and Lily's narration can be unfocused at times, but fans of Lies Beneath will be pulled right into this sequel.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(3) 1-3 Squish series. Amoeba Squish runs into a problem when he trades his beloved Super Amoeba comic books for the time-consuming video game Mitosis. This fifth graphic novel's format is split between scenes of Squish's goings-on, his Super Amoeba comics, and scenes from the video game. The dialogue is snarky, pacing is brisk, neon-green-hued comics are energetic, and science concepts are woven in smoothly.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(3) 1-3 Adventures of Arnie the Doughnut series. "Doughnut-dog" Arnie has been adopted by Mr. Bing, not to be eaten but to be his friend. When they attend Mr. Bing's bowling tournament, Arnie and his anthropomorphized-object friends--bowling balls, a slice of pizza--must solve the mystery behind the usually talented Mr. Bing's bowling blunders. With humorous cartoons and dynamically laid-out text, this zany book will engage young readers.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(3) 4-6 With the Breakfast Bunch behind him, Hector is running for class president, but it proves to be a challenge when bully Milmoe joins the race. Meanwhile, a thief is stealing all the electronic devices in the school; the culprit faces off against Lunch Lady in a high-tech battle. This ninth graphic novel in the original superhero-with-a-twist series contains eye-catching yellow-accented black-and-white cartoons.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(4) 1-3 Looniverse series. Illustrated by Matt Loveridge. Ed is a normal third grader until the day he finds a strange coin in his lawn with "Strange, Stranger" imprinted on it. Suddenly people start acting stranger than usual toward him and weird occurrences pile up. While light on actual plot aside from these strangenesses, the eccentric bizarro-world setting, brought to life by illustrator Loveridge, may draw readers.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds. Stink finds a freaky three-legged frog after swim class, and then starts running into frogs wherever he goes. The new pals inspire Stink and his gang to learn about amphibians. But is he turning into one himself? In his eighth winning chapter book with endearing-as-ever illustrations, affable Stink's inquisitive and humorous relationship with the unknown will make readers curious themselves.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker

(4) 1-3 Martha Speaks series. Adapted by Jamie White. In this glossy package of six colorful comic-strip vignettes adapted from TV series teleplays, Martha the talking dog has a series of adventures with a cast of canine characters. These easy-to-follow but slight tales will make younger readers, mostly fans of the show, excited to be spending more time with the familiar character. Activities for readers to create their own comics are appended.

Reviewer: Margaret Nell Becker