Comics Squad: Recess!

Holm, J. (2014). Comics Squad: Recess! New York: Random House.


Comics Squad is a collection of comics with hilarious characters and real life situation that readers can relate to.  The readers can identify with daydreaming and an active imagination. The author does a wonderful job of expressing the experiences and feelings of almost every child at school. The fact that they are short and funny will have young readers racing to get a copy.

Evaluative Criteria: Character and Style

Character: The author does a fantastic job in using a variety of characters the reader can relate to. We have Baby Mouse who has trouble in class and with a vivid imagination. Then we have Grover some readers can relate to being the one with no self-confidence and sometimes feeling left out. Another character we have is Jiminy Cupcake who tries to find the silver lining and the good in all things.  These strong characters help the reader identify themselves with them.

Style: We can see how style is shown in the book, beginning with how the author uses a particular color scheme throughout the story.  The author also brilliantly puts together a collection of short comics that present both realistic fiction as well as fantasy that appeals to young readers.  The language expressed in the book is normally used by the appropriate age group, which makes it more interesting to young readers.