Captain Underpants - Hardcover

Dav Pilkey has written and illustrated numerous popular, award-winning books for children, including the Captain Underpants and Dumb Bunnies series; "Dog Breath," winner of the California Young Reader Medal; and "The Paperboy," a Caldecott Honor Book. He lives with his wife in the Pacific Northwest. Visit him online at www.pilkey.com.

Gr 2–4—George and Harold, and their doubles, Yesterday George and Yesterday Harold, have a good thing going. Two of them go to school while the other two hide in the tree house and play video games all day—then they switch. But when their malicious gym teacher, Mr. Meaner, creates a method of mind control that turns their fellow students into attentive, obedient, perfect children, the future of all humanity is in the boys' hands. The catastrophe is resolved when the boys travel into the future and seek the help of their adult selves. This latest installment features several "flip-o-rama" pages that allow readers to flip quickly back and forth to create an animated effect. Like the other books in this series, the title is a combination of comic book sequences, deeply silly plotlines, and prank-filled humor. The text continues to make fun of teachers, parents, and the elderly. VERDICT When Captain Underpants first arrived on shelves in 1997, there were few books like it. Now, with fun and funny chapter books series like Megan McDonald's "Stink" (Candlewick), Dan Greenburg's "The Zack Files" (Grosset & Dunlap), and the comic-style adventures of "Geronimo Stilton" (Scholastic), the potty-mouthed caped crusader has competition. Die-hard fans, however, will likely be excited to see this 12th installment.—Paula Huddy, The Blake School-Highcroft Campus, Wayzata, MN