Graphic Novel Review: Scurry - A post-apocalyptic mouse tale by Mac Smith from Skybound Comet

Scurry - A post-apocalyptic mouse tale

by Mac Smith (Author, Artist)

February 21, 2023

328 pages

Genre: action-adventure, graphic novel, animals, middle school

Publisher: Skybound Comet

A group of house mice struggle to survive a long and strange winter. The humans are gone, the sun is rarely seen, and a cold, dark rain befouls everything it touches.

The mice, long dependent on humans for food, stubbornly cling to their old ways, looting the nearby abandoned houses for any scraps they can find. Once, there was plenty to eat, but now the scavengers return empty-handed, or not at all.

Food is scarce, but danger is everywhere. Poison and traps wait for the unwary in dark cupboards, and a gang of feral cats relentlessly chase the mice whenever the rodents leave the safety of their nest. Now there are even rumors a hawk has come to join the hunt.

As supplies run low and many mice fall ill, desperation creeps in. With the colony at a breaking point, rumors of a wrecked truck filled with food give them hope, but it lies far beyond the forest, where even the cats won’t go.

Included in Scurry, is a two-page READER'S GUIDE. The full TEACHER'S GUIDE can be found on SkyboundComet.com.

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I was blown away by Scurry! It's a visual feast from the cover to the last page. After reading comics for any amount of time you learn that the cover can be an amazing illustration but the actual comic is more simplistic. But every page--every panel--is an illustration in Scurry. Absolutely beautiful.

Scurry is as a middle-grade trilogy fantasy adventure webcomic by Mac Smith. It took him five years to complete. You can check out his website (an experience of its own)! And read the tale of Wix and his mouse colony. It is also on the webcomic platform Tapas for free. And now you can buy all three parts in one collection from Skybound Comet (a new graphic novel imprint from Image Comics aimed at young adults and middle-grade audiences.)

Three original volumes

Scurry is a dark epic fantasy adventure about a colony of mice. It follows the classic epic fantasy tropes. A richly told tale of betrayals, loyal friends, battles for their lives, and a little mystical help in the form of three foxes called the Witches. It is never stated why the humans are gone but the clues are there.

This story can be enjoyed by all ages...but be careful with kids under six...some of the images and situation could be scary. You can read it for free, but you will want to own copy to share the reading experience with your kids or classroom (there is a teachers guide on his website)...or just to admire.

5 "Don't go there!" Sheep

About the Author:

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Spawned from the radioactive swamps of the American South, the hideous beast known as Mac Smith has lumbered west across the desert wastes and north through the desolate mountains to lair in the heart of the Pacific Northwest. His only weapons are confidence born out of ignorance and militant contrarianism.

He enjoys bad movies, playing with his extremely dumb dog and drawing muppets.

It is said that he has beautiful feet for a man.

Interview: Jeremy Whitley (The Dog Knight graphic novel)

Give a big Sheep welcome to The Dog Knight writer Jeremy Whitley!

Do you have a dog?

I do! Though, fun fact, I’m a little bit allergic and didn’t want to get a dog. My daughters, on the other hand, wanted nothing more. They talked us into going out to the local rescue and finding a dog and I just accepted that I was going to need to take allergy medicine pretty regularly.

However, once we got there, the girls were running around playing with every dog on the little farm they had. Meanwhile, this big old hound dog came up to me and gently but insistently pushed his haunches up against me and quietly demanded to be scratched. He was so funny and silly and…a little bit dumb. I fell in love with that big oaf. We named him Ace and he mostly lives on our couch these days.

Ace

How did the idea of The Dog Knight come to you? Characters first or story first?
This one was pretty unusual in that it came together concept first. Dogs are so weird and they do so many little things that don’t seem to make sense. The idea that they were quietly fighting some secret war to protect humans was where it started. But I liked the idea of there being one human character that got a look into this world and help dogs do the things that dogs can’t.

Once I had that idea locked in, the question became “what kind of person would dogs choose? What sort of things would dogs look for in a champion? Frankie as a character was born from that question along with the question of what sort of person could need the sort of absolute and unquestioning love that dogs provide.

How did you find a publisher interested in The Dog Knight?
Well, all credit here goes to my agent Moe Ferrara. As soon as I brought the concept to her, she said “I know who will love this book” and she was right. It was the really basic concept and a few plot points when Holly West at Feiwel and Friends saw it, but she saw the potential in it right away. From there it was just a question of chipping away at the marble until we had the full picture. The full picture being of course a non-binary drummer kid wearing a helmet with big fluffy ears on it.

As a cis-white male (if I’m wrong, please correct me) why did you choose a Black non-binary character like Frankie?

Well, as a cis white male, there is not a shortage of heroes out there that look like me. There’s a superhero movie about one coming out almost every month this year. I think it’s much more important to tell stories about people who are under-represented in these types of stories.

When I started making comics, I wanted to make sure that my daughters could see themselves represented in comics the same way I had been able to. 

That’s what led me to create Princeless. I continue to let that desire to build characters that might represent and inspire young readers in ways they’ve never experienced in fiction drive the kind of characters I write. Right now, non-binary and trans kids are being made to feel wrong and excluded throughout the United States and other countries, but particularly here in the south. I have the amazing luck of knowing a number of incredible non-binary people in my life and I wanted kids and other readers who might not have that same luck to be able to see it in fiction. This story called for someone who is themselves even when it’s difficult and Frankie was the perfect fit.

How did you find your artist, Bre Indigo?
When I first brought the book to Feiwel and Friends, one of their conditions for picking it up was that they got to approve the artist/art style we used for it. I was fine with that under the condition that we find an artist who was non-binary. I wanted to make sure we had somebody who understood the importance of that aspect of Frankie as well as or better than me and could check me on mistakes I might not even realize I was making.

To their credit, F&F was very amicable to this request and brought me art from several different non-binary artists that they liked for the project. When I saw Bre’s art, I was sold immediately. I knew they were the perfect choice for this book and I was so excited when it turned out they were available to do it. I literally haven’t had a second thought about it since then. I think Bre is the secret sauce that takes this book from something I thought was good to something that’s extraordinary. Every time I get new art for the book, I have to do a little happy dance. They’re so good!

How much creative license did Bre have to illustrate your story? As a Black queer person, did Bre share some insight you might not have thought about?
That insight was actually something I was excited to receive. I told Bre from the get-go that if there was ever anything in the story that they thought didn’t work or needed to change, to let me know. As long as fixing it didn’t break some other part of the story, I’m prepared to change it on their say-so. I always want artists I work with to feel like a book is collaborative and not just some case where they’ve been hired as employees to realize my perfect artistic vision. But I think with this book that was even more true than usual. I can confident in saying that his book would not be the book it is without Bre.

Do you have a favorite dog in The Dog Knight?

This is a harder question than you would think because it often changes depending on the dog I’m writing at the time, but I think the truth is, once the art comes back, it has to be The Yorkshire Terror.

Just writing the Batman-esque dialog that comes from the Champion of Justice makes me chuckle, but seeing this tiny little Yorkie deliver the lines in Bre’s style never fails to tickle me. I may never come up with another concept as purely funny as “a yorkie with the attitude of Batman”

Do you have a personal playlist for The Dog Knight? What music would play during the gremlin battles? What music would Frankie listen to?
You know, I have specific playlists for some other projects but not really for The Dog Knight. I honestly write a lot of film scores and orchestral music. I spent a lot of the writing of this series listening to my playlist full of John Williams music.

As for Frankie, I think they choose a lot of the stuff they love based on the drums. They like a good mix of rock, pop, r&b and rap, but really like songs with a great beat that they can try and figure out on their snare and play along with.

What is Frankie’s favorite meal?

You know, I think Frankie is the kind of kid who will try just about anything once but ultimately prefers old favorites like mac and cheese.

What is your favorite meal?
I’m a sucker for a nice big bowl of Ramen. Especially Tonkatsu, but really any warm bowl of broth and noodles with a ramen egg will do it for me. I’ve become the sort of old man who’s a big fan of things in the soup family at the ripe old age of thirty-eight.

Chapter 9: The Trial of Smell was my favorite (Chapter 8 Trial of Justice was a close second!) Do you have a favorite chapter? And Why?
That’s a tough question, but I think I’m with you on this one. The Trial of Smell is a rare and wonderful example of, when I was outlining, only having a very vague idea of what I was going to do and then really finding it in the moment as I was writing. I don’t want to pay myself on the back too hard, but I think a lot of this is Bre’s doing as well. It could have easily been the worst or least engaging test, but on the page, it just clicks. I love both the chapter and the two characters who are introduced in it.

The Dog Knight (The Dog Knight, 1)
by Jeremy Whitley (Author), Bre Indigo (Illustrator), Melissa Capriglione (colorist)
May 16, 2023
Genre: graphic novel, middle-grade, fantasy, superhero, Children's Animal Comics , Children's Fantasy Comics, comics

Publisher: Macmillian
A nonbinary middle schooler saves a dog from bullies and is offered the chance to become the Dog Knight, protector of a magical pact between humans and dogs, in the first book of this humorous and heartwarming middle-grade graphic novel series from Jeremy Whitely, author of Princeless, and Bre Indigo, illustrator of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel.

Frankie knows who they are. They’re a drummer, they’re nonbinary, and they’re… the Dog Knight?

One day Frankie is a relatively normal middle schooler, with relatively normal challenges, like finding the perfect outfit to wear during their drum solo during the upcoming band concert. The next, they save a friendly golden retriever from bullies and suddenly find themselves in a giant magical doghouse, with a funny looking helmet, talking to a group of dog superheroes called the Pawtheon about a job offer.

If Frankie can prove that they possess the six dog virtues of loyalty, kindness, honesty, justice, stubbornness, and smell, they will be named the Dog Knight and be given the power to fight alongside the Pawtheon and save the world from the forces of chaos.

Maybe there is more to Frankie than they thought?

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About the Author

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A writer of comic books, books, podcasts, and more living in Durham, North Carolina. He is the creator of the Eisner Nominated and Glyph award winning series "Princeless" as well as it spin-off "Raven the Pirate Princess" and "The School for Extraterrestrial Girls." He has also written several books and comics for Marvel Comics including the critically-acclaimed "The Unstoppable Wasp", "The Future Foundation", "Champions", and "Avengers". He has also written over fifty issues of the "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" comic book series.

Comic Review: The Dog Knight (The Dog Knight, 1) by Jeremy Whitley (Author), Bre Indigo (Illustrator)

The Dog Knight (The Dog Knight, 1)
by Jeremy Whitley (Author), Bre Indigo (Illustrator), Melissa Capriglione (colorist)
May 16, 2023
Genre: graphic novel, middle-grade, fantasy, superhero, Children's Animal Comics , Children's Fantasy Comics, comics

Publisher: Macmillian
A nonbinary middle schooler saves a dog from bullies and is offered the chance to become the Dog Knight, protector of a magical pact between humans and dogs, in the first book of this humorous and heartwarming middle-grade graphic novel series from Jeremy Whitely, author of Princeless, and Bre Indigo, illustrator of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel.

Frankie knows who they are. They’re a drummer, they’re nonbinary, and they’re… the Dog Knight?

One day Frankie is a relatively normal middle schooler, with relatively normal challenges, like finding the perfect outfit to wear during their drum solo during the upcoming band concert. The next, they save a friendly golden retriever from bullies and suddenly find themselves in a giant magical doghouse, with a funny looking helmet, talking to a group of dog superheroes called the Pawtheon about a job offer.

If Frankie can prove that they possess the six dog virtues of loyalty, kindness, honesty, justice, stubbornness, and smell, they will be named the Dog Knight and be given the power to fight alongside the Pawtheon and save the world from the forces of chaos.

Maybe there is more to Frankie than they thought?

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The Dog Knight is charming, meaningful and fun! Jeremy Whitley's young adult comics can be appreciated by kids and adults. He writes about wonderfully diverse characters and their journeys of self-discovery, standing up for what is right, and having compassion for others. The Dog Knight is all of this and more.

I'll first talk about what I thought while reading The Dog Knight.  This is a feel-good action/adventure story that had me rooting for Frankie to complete the trials and become the Dog Knight and the best version of Frankie they could be! As a mom, it was nice to see a story with a parent that supports and respects their kid's choices. 

Next, I will talk about why this story is important. In today's climate...where people are trying to erase the LGBTQ+ community from schools, we need more stories like this.

Frankie is a middle-school non-binary character. Just like every middle schooler, they are trying to figure out how to fit into a world where adults want to divide everyone into "this" or "that." But for Frankie, it is a little more complicated. For example, they don't feel comfortable in traditional "boy" clothes or "girl" clothes but those seem to be the only choices. Until they find out who they are, how can they begin to explain to others around them what being non-binary means? Whitley shows how important a supportive parent and a good friend are for any kid that doesn't fit in yet.

The use of dogs is the perfect symbol of how to be a good person. A group of superhero dogs protects mankind from the minions of chaos by using traits that dogkind values most: Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty, Stubbornness, Justice, and Smell (this one is explained in the story). Frankie must pass a trial for each trait to become the Dog Knight (without their mom, who has a dog allergy, finding out!) But it isn't easy. Could you show kindness or justice to people who have bullied you?

The artist Bre Indigo has a style that is a natural match for this story and its target audience. I've been following Bre's young adult LGBTQ+ webcomic, Jamie, for a long time. She has a wonderful ability to tell a story in comic form. Her art is comfortable and cheerful. As a black queer person, like Frankie, I think Bre was able to bring a lot to The Dog Knight. 

The Dog Knight is a must for any library. It is the type of representation that can help queer kids and their non-queer peers understand what being non-binary is about in a humorous and genuine way that can open the door for some positive discussion.

5 "doggie hat" Sheep

SharonS

About the Authors

Jeremy Whitley 

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A writer of comic books, books, podcasts, and more living in Durham, North Carolina. He is the creator of the Eisner Nominated and Glyph award winning series "Princeless" as well as it spin-off "Raven the Pirate Princess" and "The School for Extraterrestrial Girls." He has also written several books and comics for Marvel Comics including the critically-acclaimed "The Unstoppable Wasp", "The Future Foundation", "Champions", and "Avengers". He has also written over fifty issues of the "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" comic book series.

Bre Indigo

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An illustrator of the graphic novel Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy and the online web-comic Jamie, is a black, queer, freelance artist and illustrator based in Orange County, California.

Excerpt: The Haunting of Elmwood Manor (a Pekin Dewlap Mystery) by Pamela McCord + giveaway

The Haunting of Elmwood Manor (a Pekin Dewlap Mystery)

by Pamela McCord
March 1, 2019
Published by: Acorn Publishing
Publication date:
Genres: Middle-Grade, Mystery
Pekin Dewlap hasn’t seen a ghost since she was twelve. But she’d do anything to get them back. Starting a ghostbusting business with her two best friends, Amber and Scout, seems like the perfect way to accomplish her goal. Of course, playing with ghosts isn’t high on their wish list, so Pekin has to do some arm-twisting to get them on board.

Once committed, Pekin and her friends find themselves in deep, trying to solve the disappearance of fourteen-year-old Miranda Talbert. Miranda went missing in 1918, and her spirit has wandered the halls of Elmwood Manor for the last hundred years.

In the midst of finding Miranda, discovering her budding feelings for Scout, and consoling a terrified Amber, Pekin is met by an angry ghost set on thwarting her plans. Will the Ghosties be able to help Miranda, or will Pekin’s business die before she solves the mystery?

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EXCERPT:
THE IDEA WAS SCARY. Exciting. Overwhelming.

She wanted to tell her best friends, Amber and Scout, about her new ghost-hunting business. Amber being Amber, she would freak out and say no way before Pekin could explain all the reasons it was a good idea.

Pekin had decided to do all the legwork before telling Amber and Scout about her big plan. Get her ducks in a row, be ready to answer any question or objection they threw at her. The next day, she would convince her friends how exciting this adventure would be.

Despite her anxiety, Pekin slept fairly well and was awake half an hour before her 7:30 a.m. alarm. She rolled onto her back and opened her eyes, nervous at the prospect of coming clean with her friends. With extra time before needing to get ready for school, Pekin propped up on her pillows and looked around her room, going over her plans.

Her bedroom reflected her personality, more practical than all fan girlie over the latest boy band. She kept it clean, her bed made every morning. Clothes were never tossed on the floor. She wasn’t into the rumpled look. A full-length mirror was tacked to the closet door for examining her outfits, since changing her clothes multiple times before deciding on the perfect look was her norm.

Two posters graced the walls, both copies of the ones hanging in Agent Mulder’s office in The X-Files, one reading “I Want to Believe” and the other proclaiming “The Truth is Out There.” A white bookcase reflected her obsession with the paranormal, as it was stocked with tales of haunted houses and ghostly visitations. Ghosts weren’t the only thing Pekin loved. Her bookshelves also contained a healthy dose of Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden books. Sure, they were popular when her mom was a kid, but they were still full of great ideas for teenage sleuths and fueled her daydreams of solving mysteries.

Her gaze fell on a photo of the three friends she’d stuck in the mirror of her dresser. She loved this picture. It was taken six months ago, and showed Pekin, bookish and nerdy, and Amber, looking short next to Pekin and Scout, her beautiful auburn hair wisping around her face. Then there was Scout. Tall, good looking in a Bill Gates sort of way, glasses, studious. And the reason Pekin loved the picture.

Pekin had known Scout since second grade (he was in third grade at the time, an older man), and this year he’d blossomed (if you could say that about a guy), shooting up three inches, getting contact lenses, losing the braces. Her heart plunked the first time she saw him after summer break was over and he’d come back from spending two months in Europe with his family. But he couldn’t know about that, and she made sure not to let on that she liked him, not even to Amber, who would no doubt let it slip to Scout. Pekin would be so embarrassed if he knew.

Twirling a strand of blonde hair around a finger, she pondered how to approach Scout and Amber. Pekin wanted to be a ghostbuster. She wanted excitement, and imagined herself and Scout searching for ghosts in haunted houses. Amber would be there, too, of course, but Amber didn’t figure in Pekin’s daydreams the same way Scout did.

Still dressed in pajamas, Pekin wandered into her walk-in closet and inspected her options. Jeans, of course, but what top? She selected a white T-shirt with a big orange Cheshire Cat grinning on the front. She loved the way her hazel eyes popped when she wore it. Running her fingers through her hair, she turned sideways so she could admire the way it fell around her shoulders and down her back, then headed for the bathroom to brush her teeth and shower.

During her shower, Pekin considered her outfit, the one she’d picked for the day. Scout once said that the Cheshire Cat was his favorite Alice in Wonderland character. She hoped he’d notice her shirt and admire it the way she wanted.

As if. The three of them had been friends for ever. They’d grown up together. Scout probably thought of her as a sister. Just because she now saw him in a new light didn’t mean he felt the same about her.

Amber had already started attracting attention from boys. Pekin was a bit jealous, but not about the other boys. She only wished Scout would notice her in that way.

Pekin stepped out of the shower and used a wide-toothed comb for the damp tangles of her hair, confiding in Grandma Virginia that this business was a perfect fit for her. She’d been obsessed with all things ghost for as long as she could remember. She couldn’t count the number of times she, Amber, and Scout had sat in her family room watching scary movies or TV shows.

Pekin was nervous about meeting Amber and Scout for lunch. She’d been nervous pretty much all the time since she’d taken steps toward making her big idea a reality. As her planning had taken shape, she’d found it hard not to give off any clues that something was different with her.

The time had come to fess up.

About the Author:

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Pam was born in Arkansas several decades ago. She’s not sure if that makes her a Southern Girl or if moving to Southern California when she was five revokes her Southern Girl card. She started writing later in life when she was challenged by a friend to create a book out of his story idea. Reaching the first 5,000 words was a milestone, but with time and hard work she managed to finish an entire book, much to her surprise. Since then, she’s written several novels, in several genres. Romance, middle grade and paranormal comprise most of her work. Pam has spent over 40 years working as a legal secretary at a law firm in Orange County, California. Aside from writing, she follows the stock market, buying, selling and trading stocks and options. In contrast to that, she loves trips to Las Vegas where she can spend many happy hours at the Pai Gow tables. She shares a condo with her very own My Cat From Hell TV star, Allie, who manages to exude just enough affection to make her scary feral ways tolerable.

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Selah's Manga Mania Review: My Neighbor Seki, 1 by Takuma Morishige

My Neighbor Seki, 1

by Takuma Morishige
January 4, 2014
Volumes: 10 (List of volumes)
English publisher: NA Vertical
Genre: Comedy
Demographic: Seinen
Toshinari Seki takes goofing off to new heights. Every day, on or around his school desk, he masterfully creates his own little worlds of wonder, often hidden to most of his classmates. Unfortunately for Rumi Yokoi, his neighbor at the back of their homeroom, his many games, dioramas, and projects are often way too interesting to ignore; even when they are hurting her grades.

Sometimes, you just want something light and fun with no huge stakes. Something ridiculous with an overall good narrative. I picked up volume one of My Neighbor Seki on a whim, and while it didn’t grab me by the throat, it’s a lot of fun.

Rumi Yokoi sits next to Toshinari Seki in school. Seki takes goofing off to the extreme, and she inevitably gets sucked into his antics…and of course ends up taking the blame half the time when they draw attention. Adventures range from massive domino displays to polishing a desk to mirror-worthy shine, to leading chess pieces into giant battle adventures, to robots tagging along for an emergency drill. So, how was this volume for me? Let’s break it down.

The good: Every class session gets more and more ridiculous, and that’s where this manga really shines. Yokoi gets so flustered and affronted and Seki’s antics grow more and more ridiculous, that it really is fun to see what on earth he’ll try to pull next. Both kids are really likeable, and it’s fun to see the emotions keep ramping up with each passing chapter. The art is fairly typical and expressive, and there are some fun things done with typical, everyday objects.

The bad: Not necessarily bad, but that’s basically all there is to the premise. There’s very limited engagement between Seki and Yokoi, so the character interaction and potential conflicts are very internalized and limited. It’s a one-note gag played to the extreme. It’s funny and cute, but I hope that if this moves into other volumes, we get more of an actual story.

The ick: Nothing. These are middle-grade kids in school, doing kids in school things. 

If you want something to kick back with and give you a giggle, definitely look for this one. If you’re looking for more of a broader story, be aware this isn’t a title that’s setting itself up for that so far.

3 sheep 

About the Author:

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Selah Janel is a writer who is trying to start doing that again instead of reading manga all the time.

Tips for being a really great and scary ghost, by Constance Laughter + giveaway

Tips for being a really great and scary ghost, by Constance Laughter

First, you really must consider a detached limb. Try to arrange for that before you die—preferably right before you die if it's your head or something, but earlier is totally fine too if you're going for a hand or toe. You must make sure you have this item—your detached thing—when you croak. If you don't, you've lost out on some serious scarability because it won't "cross over" with you. That would be a shame.

A detached limb is great because with it you can: a) wear it backwards and scare people, b) throw it at people from a tree or something, c) leave it in a spot to "mark your territory" if you want to come back to that place later, and d) exchange your detached limb with a friend.

Second, you need to perfect your grimace. You know, the kind with teeth that cause old ladies to break wind and old men to drop their toupees? Instant ghost points and you barely had to do anything. I can't stress enough how important a really great grimace is.

Third—and this is the part that will really seal the deal—you need a theme song. I don't mean like Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme song, but like something you can sing and totally freak people out with. Living people HATE it when ghosts sing. Which isn't fair if you ask me. Living people can sing. Why can't we? Anyway, a theme song. I chose to sing about a monster—a public service announcement if you ask me, not that Isabel Wixon saw it that way. Anyway, think of something to sing, the shriller your voice the better, and have at 'er.

And that's it, three simple steps that will have you causing heart attacks and creating more ghosts left and right. Once you've scared your first living person to death, go ahead and pat yourself on the back. You deserve it.

The Boatman 

by Kat Hawthorne
April 30, 2018 
Genre: Middle-Grade Horror, Fantasy
Publisher: Common Deer Press
ISBN: 978-1-988761-20-6 paperback
ISBN: 978-1-988761-21-3 ebook
ASIN: B07BFFQS1D
Number of pages: 126
Word Count: 25,000
Cover Artist and Illustrator Dora Mitchell
Eleven-year-old Isabel Wixon retreats into a fantasy world to cope with her grief

Isabel Wixon is weird. Not only does she see dead things, but her list of friends consists of a talkative ventriloquist’s dummy and the gentlemanly spider that lives in her hair. Real friends? Too hard. Inventing friends is much easier. Inventing the Boatman—a terrible monster that lures kids into a strange sleeping sickness and never lets them go—probably wasn’t one of her better ideas though.

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Excerpt:
Izzy froze as the spirit of a young girl appeared before her. This morning, as she did on occasion, the girl had taken off her head. The ghost’s body hefted the head a few times, obviously fixing to lob it at Izzy. She stiffened. Izzy had never been hit by a detached head before, but she doubted it would be much fun.

“The Boatman is looking for you,” the ghost-girl said so quietly Izzy couldn’t be sure if what she’d heard was the ghost’s voice or the leaves on the trees above laughing as the rain tickled them. “You should be very careful not to—GAH!!”

Just then, and for no reason Izzy could see, the body fumbled and dropped the head. It crashed to the ground and began rolling away. “You cumbersome hunk of junk!” the head squealed as it bumped into a tree and came to an indelicate halt.

Blindly, the body bent over and began feeling around on the forest floor. Looking for something round, it located a large rock. It spent a few moments trying to lift it, but as everyone knows, ghosts cannot lift things. The head sighed. “Hello! I’m over here you brain dead oaf!” it hollered from its place near the tree. Finally, the body stumbled toward it.

After poking a finger in the head’s eye and shoving another up its nose, ghost-girl’s body heaved the head up by its stringy hair and placed it back onto its neck hole, spinning it around a few times as though it were screwing in a light bulb. When finally the head was fixed into place, though slightly crooked, the now-whole ghost-girl stretched as if she were stiff. “Silly, clumsy thing,” she said. “I swear, one day my body will lose me! How will I ever get a head then?” The ghost put a hand on her belly and chuffed at her own joke.

But not Izzy, she was too afraid to laugh. Instead, she swallowed. Usually when the headless ghost-girl appeared, Izzy ran away. But not today. There was something she’d been meaning to ask, and she knew that the only way to get the answer was to be brave and ask it. Besides, after the whole dropped head debacle and the thing about cracking jokes, the ghost seemed too distracted to be menacing. So Izzy stood as tall as she could and hoped the ghost would not notice her rattling knees. “Um,” she stammered, “who is the Boatman?”

The ghost crossed her arms over her chest. Her lips looked like a pair of bloated worms, particularly when they were pooched out, as they were right then. She tilted her head to the side, or at least she tilted it more to the side than it already was. “Did you just speak to me? Are you not frightened?”

“Yes—I mean no.” Izzy nodded and then shook her head. She peeled a slithering wet clump of hair off of her forehead. She looked back at the ghost, who still waited for an answer. “Oh...Um...I mean, yes I spoke, and no I’m not afraid.” It was half true at least.

The ghost-girl slumped, which made her seem far less frightening. “Really? Am I losing my touch? That would be the pits. I’ve been trying so hard.”

“Oh!” Izzy scrunched her eyebrows together. She didn’t want to hurt the ghost’s feelings. She simply hadn’t considered how the ghost must be feeling. After all, scaring people was the ghostly way. Everyone knew that.

Izzy scratched her pointy elbow then continued. “Well then, I admit that you’ve done a wonderful job scaring me these past few weeks. I mean, the head thing and the song—very creepy. Truly top notch material. However, I don’t know who this Boatman fellow is. I’m not sure if I ought to be afraid of him or not. Perhaps you could explain? That might help.”

The ghost rubbed her chin as if considering. “Well, if you think it will help.”

Izzy nodded. “I do.”

Theatrically, the ghost hovered a few inches off the ground and faded in and out as the trees swayed and small shafts of morning light blinked right through her. Her voice was low-pitched when she began to speak, very unlike the shrill soprano she took on while singing. “The Boatman is a hideous monster who lives in the world of dreams.” With this, the ghost waved her arm as if indicating that they were in the world of dreams currently. “He sails his rickety boat around on the lake of your thoughts. He is the one responsible for every nightmare you’ve ever had; he’s the one who controls your fear and...”

The ghost sighed and visibly deflated, seeming displeased by the quality of her storytelling. Izzy had to admit, the ghost’s tone had lost some pizazz as she went on. “Too over-the-top?” the ghost asked.

Izzy shrugged one shoulder. “Perhaps a teensy bit.”

About the Author:
Goodreads
Kat Hawthorne is a nerd times three. Besides writing, she enjoys creating visual art and playing her cello. She is mother to three small boys, who are unwittingly the inspiration for her need to write.

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Book Review: Scary School: Monsters on the March by Derek the Ghost

As winners of last year's Ghoul Games, the students of Scary School are off to Monster Forest. School may be scary, but the forest has a few frights of its own, including:

Bearodactyls—so terrifying we can't even show you pictures of them
Princess Zogette, the Monster King's toad-faced daughter, who falls for Charles Nukid . . . hard
Captain Pigbeard, fearsome leader of the Monster-Pirates and Princess Zogette's fiancÉ (well, former fiancÉ, thanks to Charles)
And when Zogette follows Charles to Scary School, the Monster King and Captain Pigbeard raise their armies and chase after her. But the monsters have no idea who—or what—they're dealing with.

In this clever, funny sequel to the frighteningly hilarious Scary School, Charles, Penny Possum, Dr. Dragonbreath, and all the students and teachers prove that scary monsters are no match for Scary School!

If you have a kid in middle school, you have to get this series for them! I reviewed Scary School #1 last year along with my daughter who was in the 5th grade and we both loved it. (You can check out the review here.) So I was thrilled when Derek the Ghost sent me the second book Scary School: Monsters on the March. All the kids from the first book are there, at least the ones still alive, and now they are in the 6th grade. This tickled my daughter who is also going into the 6th grade and she also said she wishes these books would be made into a movie.

Here is an snippet which is representative of the whole book:

"Petunia led the way to the school yard. Jacqueline's haunted house stood beside the path that leads through the playground, which some kids like to call the slayground because of the high probability of injury or demise. Take, for instance, the alligators at the bottom of the slide. Brave kids still like to ride it, though. It's a fun slide until that last part with the chomping and dismemberment."Like the first book, this one is narrated by Derek the Ghost. Scary School won the Ghoul Games in book one and their prize is going to visit the King of Monsters. Things go wrong as they always do when dealing with monsters and King Zog declares war on Scary School. The kids and teachers must find a way to defeat 5000 karate monsters and 5000 monster-pirates! There is even a little bit of romance.

This book, like the first one, has wonderful silly illustrations of all the new characters, except an adult Bearodactyl because they are too terrifying. Author Derek Taylor Kent includes a character named Steven Kingsley who is afraid of everything and loves writing and baseball. Steven gets sucked into The Locker of Infinite Oblivion where he runs into a clown in a sewer drain, a giant spider, an ax murderer in a big hotel and then he ends up in a car crash and rescued by a scary lady that makes him do homework. Your kids might not get the references, but I am sure you do <G>.

There is a really cool website that kids can visit to get extra chapters and information about Scary School. If you are looking to donate a book to an Elementary or Middle school this would perfect.

5 “folded cloth–twisted flax–reed–reed-stool”

SharonS (edited by BAK)