(3) 4-6 Illustrated by James Burks. On a field trip, fourth grader Willy Maykit finds himself marooned on a distant planet when the spaceship conveying his class leaves without him. Willy, classmate Cindy, and alien Norp must hold off the voracious monsters that populate Planet Ed until they can get home. Humor and silliness reign, and plot drives the bus in this entertaining read featuring cartoony black-and-white illustrations.

Reviewer: Amy Lois Cohn

(3) 1-3 Adventures of Jo Schmo series. Illustrated by Frank W. Dormer. Fourth-grade superhero Jo is honing a new talent--shape-shifting--and must channel it to stop villain Numb Skull's latest machinations (Shifty); Jo and pup Raymond get on the bad side of time-traveling pirates who team up with her nemeses for revenge (Pinkbeard's). Madcap to the max, these installments will please established series fans and newbies alike. Dormer's childlike line drawings enliven the antics. Review covers these The Adventures of Jo Schmo titles: Pinkbeard's Revenge and Shifty Business.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) 1-3 Adventures of Jo Schmo series. Illustrated by Frank W. Dormer. Fourth-grade superhero Jo is honing a new talent--shape-shifting--and must channel it to stop villain Numb Skull's latest machinations (Shifty); Jo and pup Raymond get on the bad side of time-traveling pirates who team up with her nemeses for revenge (Pinkbeard's). Madcap to the max, these installments will please established series fans and newbies alike. Dormer's childlike line drawings enliven the antics. Review covers these The Adventures of Jo Schmo titles: Pinkbeard's Revenge and Shifty Business.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) 1-3 Adventures of Jo Schmo series. Illustrated by Frank W. Dormer. Superhero fourth-grader Jo Schmo and her faithful mutt Raymond are endowed with special powers in time to stop a villain who is terrorizing San Francisco with dead dinosaurs. Next, Jo and Raymond travel in a time machine to the Gold Rush days to find infamous outlaw Wyatt Burp. Dormer's wry illustrations of the duo's antics are especially amusing in this winning new chapter book series. Review covers these Adventures of Jo Schmo titles: Dinos are Forever and Wyatt Burp Rides Again.

Reviewer: Nicki Richesin

(3) 1-3 Adventures of Jo Schmo series. Illustrated by Frank W. Dormer. Superhero fourth-grader Jo Schmo and her faithful mutt Raymond are endowed with special powers in time to stop a villain who is terrorizing San Francisco with dead dinosaurs. Next, Jo and Raymond travel in a time machine to the Gold Rush days to find infamous outlaw Wyatt Burp. Dormer's wry illustrations of the duo's antics are especially amusing in this winning new chapter book series. Review covers these Adventures of Jo Schmo titles: Dinos are Forever and Wyatt Burp Rides Again.

Reviewer: Nicki Richesin

(3) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. Melvin and his superhero crew leave LA for outer space when rogue aliens kidnap two of their own. Dorkily heroic as ever, Melvin splats, thuds, and kabonks his way to saving the day yet again, in a manner very similar to his seven previous efforts. The goofiness, reinforced by comics-style black-and-white illustrations, will tickle Melvin followers.

Reviewer: Betsy Murray

(4) YA Elroy is determined to get a girlfriend, but he's not sure quite how to go about it. He tutors his crush, forms a band, joins the wrestling team, and even investigates the seamy activities of the school's "Second Base Club." Although the plotting is uneven, the story's broad, adolescent-boy humor (think Superbad) will appeal to many readers.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. Unlikely superhero Melvin Beederman chases a trio of bad guys back in time as they try to stop the Melvin of the past from becoming a superhero. Though the repetitive silliness of the series grows a bit tiresome, the story will likely elicit guffaws from fans. Comic-style illustrations continue to add to the series' humor.

Reviewer: Betsy Murray

(4) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. Pint-sized flying-impaired and X-ray-vision-burdened hero Melvin Beederman continues to protect LA from supervillains of all kinds--even valley girls. These bad-gals want to take over the city by kidnapping the mayor's dog, but the mayor is no innocent victim himself. Like the others in the series, this book embraces genre clichés for zany, formulaic fun.

Reviewer: Betsy Murray

(4) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. The adventures continue for Melvin and sidekick Candace as they fight the evildoers of LA. Melvin is off to Vegas for a convention and leaves Candace in charge, while a new batch of bad guys plot to steal her super powers. With repetition in language and plot, the series is formulaic but entertaining. Creative cartoon pencil-sketched illustrations add verve.

Reviewer: Betsy Murray

(4) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. The clumsy crusader is back to protect LA from dastardly evildoers. Aside from a new bad guy, this fourth book is much of the same: Melvin watches TV with his pet rat, Melvin can't fly until the fifth try, Melvin saves the day. Silly details help the plot rise above mere formula. Energetic comic-book-style sketches accompany the text.

Reviewer: Elizabeth Shaver

(4) 1-3 Melvin Beederman Superhero series. Illustrated by Rhode Montijo. Unlikely superhero Melvin Beederman returns in this third installment. A new evildoer, "Joe the Bad Guy," and his random scheme of making evil clones of the lead-singer of the title band, are all that differentiate this from the first two Beederman stories. Cheesy superhero conventions and jokes abound; sometimes they're even funny. Pencil-sketch illustrations add style and humor.

Reviewer: Elizabeth Shaver