2009, 2010 Beach Lane edition
M. T. Anderson
Illustrated by Kurt Cyrus
A Pals in Peril Tale: Jasper Dash and the Flame-Pits of Delaware
Bought newish for $6.99
Slightly worn paperback
B-
While the idea of treating the state of Delaware as an exotic, forbidding land is amusing, I found this to be the least funny of the series so far. (The letter from the real Governor of Delaware, reprinted in the back, is as witty as Anderson at his best here.) However, the Cyrus illustrations are his best yet, especially the two-page spreads of the wondrous sights of Dover. Of the writing, I most enjoyed the logic puzzle, which Anderson has the characters solve, deconstruct, and then reconstruct. There's an excerpt from the next book, Agent Q, or the Smell of Danger!, but I'm not interested enough in the series (now, as you'll notice, renamed from M. T. Anderson's Thrilling Tales) to continue anytime soon.
I ran across your review while obsessively Googling myself. You might be interested to know that the series turns a corner after book 3, and by book 5, Zombie Mommy, it has returned to something more closely resembling book 1, Whales on Stilts. At least, that's my perception. And in the final exciting installment, due this June, the kids are transported to the region of the Horsehead Nebula where they learn the startling secret of Jasper's "father". Not to be missed! Thank you for your kind comments, by the way.
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Kurt, thank you for stopping by. I'll have to take a look at the later entries in the series.
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