Tag: MG Humour

‘Mission: Manta Ray’ by Philip Kavvadias

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In Finn & Milo’s second adventure, they find themselves skydiving on to a ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (along with Arti the microraptor) for a special mission to investigate strange happenings in the Mariana Trench in their capacity as RAPTOR junior agents. But almost as soon as they arrive, the ship is torpedoed by a submarine in the shape of a giant manta ray and they find themselves adrift alone on a life raft. When they finally reach a volcanic island they are reunited with another junior agent, Tasi, and a familiar enemy. Can they escape the bad guys and find out what is going on at the bottom of the ocean?

Finn is such a charmingly reluctant hero and even though his priority is always getting something to eat, he is fiercely protective of Arti and occasionally comes up with a brilliant plan that actually works. His narration is laugh-out-loud hilarious and I giggled throughout the book. Once again, Milo (‘The Professor’) is a fountain of knowledge and vocabulary, and Tasi is a competent, efficient but socially inept addition to the team.

I gave a copy of the book to my nine-year-old niece at Easter and she opened it up straight away and finished it the same day. (She confessed that she turned the lights back on at bedtime to finish it, after she was supposed to be asleep.) And her favourite bit was ‘all the rhetorical questions’. (Finn’s malapropisms eg. ‘a red oracle question’.)

‘Mission: Manta Ray’ is another non-stop, madcap adventure featuring intrepid children, thrilling action, wildly imaginative technology, and witty banter. An absolutely delight, and perfect for children aged 7-12.

Thanks to Philip & Chicken House for the ARC.

‘Mission: Microraptor’ by Philip Kavvadias

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Finn is on a school trip in the French Alps with his friend Milo (the ‘Professor’) when he falls into a glacier and discovers a mysterious egg. Later that night the egg begins to hatch, Finn thinks this could be his big break into becoming a YouTuber, so he films it. But he could never have anticipated what actually emerges – an extinct, 65 million-year-old, flying dinosaur called a microraptor.

Arty (Artemis) the microraptor immediately imprints on Finn but they hardly have any time to bond before their hotel room is under siege by mercenaries trying to steal the microraptor, and Finn, Milo and Arty only narrowly escape by abseiling out of the window with the help of secret agent Lara, of the special branch of the Natural History Museum. The four of them go on the run together to keep Arty out of the hands of the evil scientists and get her safely back to England.

Finn is a character that a lot of children will be able to relate to. He is not keen on hiking or any other kind of physical activity – he only likes three things: video games, takeaway food and a large couch. But as soon as Arty hatches he is astonished to discover that he will do anything to protect her, including hiking through the Black Forest, building their own shelter and foraging for food. 

There are plenty of children’s books that claim to be funny but the humour is often limited to fart jokes – Philip’s writing is genuinely laugh-out-loud hilarious. This madcap adventure is crammed with non-stop action, survival skills, witty quips, and impossible creatures – perfect for fans of Rick Riordan, Maz Evans and Katie & Kevin Tsang’s ‘Dragon Realm’ books. This story would be particularly great for reluctant readers as it is relatively short and illustrated throughout by Euan Cook, in addition to being fun and fast-paced. And who doesn’t love a dinosaur? 

‘Mission: Microraptor’ is also the first of a series and Finn and Milo will be back for their second adventure soon.

Thanks to Chicken House for the ARC.

‘The Boy Who Made Monsters’ by Jenny Pearson

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When Benji’s parents go missing at sea, he moves, with his older brother Stanley, to the Highlands of Scotland to live with their Uncle Hamish. Hamish runs a holiday resort on the shore of Loch Lochy but his business is not going well. Benji decides it is not enough just to pray to God, Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu, the goddess Guanyin, and Spiderman – he needs to come up with a plan to save Loch Lochy Holiday Lets. And what could be a bigger tourist attraction than a Loch Lochy Monster?

Benji is convinced the Loch Lochy monster is real, but unfortunately it is rather camera shy. Together with his new friend, Murdy Mei-Yin McGurdy, and Hamish’s dog, Mr Dog, he decides to create a monster so they will have photographic evidence to pull in the crowds. Unfortunately, their monster-making plans do not go smoothly. 

Benji is a delightfully endearing character, full of hope, positivity, and inspired ideas. But although Benji is sunny on the surface, there are monsters lurking in the deep waters below and eventually he will have to face them. 

We had a Scottish summer holiday a few years ago on the shores of Loch Oich (which is the next one up from Loch Lochy) and I spent quite a bit of time scanning the water for suspicious shapes, I’ve always found stories of the Loch Ness Monster endlessly fascinating and compelling, so I was excited to read this one. 

Jenny Pearson is an author who will reliably make you laugh and cry and ‘The Boy Who Made Monsters’ is like a funnier, MG version of ‘A Monster Calls’. This is a book about bereavement and coping with grief, but it is also a hilarious, madcap monster-romp, and a warm-hearted story about family and friendship. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Bravo Jenny, Queen of Funny Fiction!  

Thanks to Usborne for the ARC.

‘Pizza Pete and the Perilous Potions’ by Carrie Sellon, illustrated by Sarah Horne

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Pete’s favourite word is ‘home’ and when something awful happens he decides he’s just going to stay at home forever in the flat that he shares with his Dad above their pizza takeaway shop. But they’ve been losing customers to the pizza chain on the high street and Pete’s Dad breaks the news that they are about to be evicted if they can’t raise £10,000 in four days. 

But then Pete finds a suitcase of mysterious potions in the attic and he comes up with a brilliant plan to save their home. Together with his best friend Anna, Pete creates a menu of magical pizzas to give each customer an experience they will never forget. At first their scheme is a roaring success, until the potions start going wrong.

School refusal and anxiety is at an all time high after the pandemic, but Pete is one of the few children’s book characters I’ve come across who is struggling with this, and the issue is handled with warmth and sensitivity.

‘Pizza Pete and the Perilous Potions’ is a hilarious, madcap pizza adventure with a poignant message about family at its heart – perfect for lower KS2.