Lunch! (Comics Squad #2)

Gr 2-5--Once again a veritable who's who of children's cartoonists assemble to offer up a collection of short comics around a theme. This second anthology presents stories that share the common thread of lunch, although the context in each tale varies a great deal, from the gross to the unexpected, the historic, and even the prehistoric. Familiar characters such as Jarrett Krosoczka's Lunch Lady, Jennifer and Matt Holm's Babymouse, and even Peanuts' Snoopy appear in original stories that will satisfy fans of the referenced source material. Jeffrey Brown's "Cave Soup" kicks off a new comics series from the creator of "Jedi Academy" that blends humor and historical evidence into a story about a Neanderthal family. Class rivals find common ground over scientific lunchroom experiments in Cecil Castellucci and Sara Varon's "Worst Day Ever." Two particularly strong stories are Nathan Hale's "Lunch Bomb 1943" and Jason Shiga's "The Case of the Missing Science Project." The former recounts a historical event from World War II, in which the crew on a U.S. destroyer successfully defended themselves and the ship from a Japanese submarine by attacking the sub with a barrage of raw potatoes. Shiga takes the "Choose Your Own Adventure"-style comic storytelling that earned him praise in Meanwhile (Abrams, 2010) and adds the element of time travel in "Missing Science Project." The unfamiliar mechanics of Shiga's comic may baffle some, but the payoff is unlike anything this reader has experienced in a story prior. VERDICT Overall, this anthology offers up a lot of strong selections with tons of appeal.--Matthew C. Winner, Ducketts Lane Elementary School, Elkridge, MD