June 1, 2021
An amusing self-help manual on building robots--and friendships. "Making a friend can seem like a scary, impossible task. But trust me--with the right power tools and a basic understanding of Advanced Robotics, it's easy!" A smiling kid with a black bob and safety goggles hauls around sheet metal, cables, and a blow torch in preparation for a friendship-construction project. Guiding the little engineer is a book from the library, a How To Make a Friend manual with a retro color scheme and illustrations, which provide snippets of wisdom as the text of the book. The visuals feel like a 1970s cartoon, jaunty and geometric, creating an upbeat vibe from which one can almost hear the silly sound effects. The kid's parents peek into the bedroom as the protagonist hides a chunk of plutonium from them. With deadpan delivery, Martin's humor is well balanced and fast paced, and it has at its core some very real advice accompanying the exuberant visuals. Friendships can ebb and flow, and there are times when one should walk away from a relationship, especially if the friend starts hanging around with the wrong crowd--that could destroy the city! The technically savvy young protagonist proves to be a smart problem-solver, finding more than just books at the library. Both kid and parents are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.) So entertaining that the good advice slips right in. (Picture book. 5-8)
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July 19, 2021
Martin offers a wry guide to friend making—literally, “with the right power tools and a basic understanding of Advanced Robotics, it’s easy!” Vintage animation–style art by Aserr, which will appeal to fans of Big Hero 6, depicts a dark-haired, light brown–skinned child as they check out a manual from the library and weld a towering yellow robot in their secret lab. Subsequent friendship activities including tea parties and tree house building go as planned, though hopscotch and water balloon fights prove troublesome (“Ah, wait... Water fights are not a good idea,” one rounded panel reads, as the robot short-circuits). Genuine advice parallels speculative art—“Don’t be alarmed or upset if your friend decides to make some other friends,” one spread reads, before the images show the child stopping their friend from leading a robot army rebellion. A clever self-help parody bolstered by real-life-applicable advice.
July 1, 2021
Grades K-2 With help from a library book--How To Make A Friend--one girl embarks on building herself a new companion. Led by the manual's cheery tips and commentary, which comprise the main narrative, and its promise that "with the right power tools and a basic understanding of Advanced Robotics, it's easy!" she assembles her components, gets busy, and completes an oversize, metallic playmate. But when the robot starts literally making other (robot) friends, and they unleash havoc on the city, the girl bravely steps in and, with some fast thinking and action, prevents further destruction. As the guide notes, "Some friendships just don't work out . . . for one reason or another." Thankfully, other opportunities await, as hinted by the concluding scene depicting the girl and her new human friend, happily tinkering together. Throughout, the manual's perky text and retro-futuristic visuals drolly depict the girl's adventures in vibrant, slick cartoon artwork, including plenty of classic robots. The tongue-in-cheek humor and hyperbolic elements add levity to this story interweaving an adventuresome plot with supportive, practical friendship advice.
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