Two-Headed Chicken (Two-Headed Chicken #1)

by Tom Angleberger (Author) Tom Angleberger (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

In a hilarious, absurdist romp by New York Times best-selling creator Tom Angleberger, a two-headed chicken races across the multiverse to escape a hungry moose. Anything is possible in the multiverse, including a madcap adventure starring a plucky two-headed chicken. But look out--there's a chicken-hungry moose in pursuit!

In this fourth wall-breaking graphic novel, our double-headed hero is chased through dozens of bizarre universes, from an ocean planet with a disturbing mermoose (that you can never unsee) to a world where chickens drive cars, and even to a land covered with . . . pizza sauce? With each BZOOP! of the universe-hopping Astrocap, the only thing to expect is the unexpected. Packed with jokes, quizzes, and games, the two-headed chicken's wacky escapades will remind readers of such favorites as Dog Man and CatStronauts.

Absurdist superstar Tom Angleberger makes his original graphic novel debut with this lightning-fast caper that will have readers laughing out loud and eager for each new page.

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Starred Review
As deliciously original and absurdly wacky as any Angleberger creation. The digital artwork combines off-kilter, hilarious, and wonderfully disruptive graphic novel animation with old-fashioned multimedia collage. . . It is knee-slappingly funny and utterly original at every level. . . as quick and easy to devour as fried chicken.

Publishers Weekly

Rendered in bold hues and a loopy, cockeyed line, this graphic novel by Angleberger (the Inspector Flytrap series) capitalizes on two seemingly unstoppable forces: the multiverse story craze, and kids' love of being barraged by goofy jokes. Readers are asked to imagine they're one head of a cockeyed, two-headed chicken; the other head is the reader's sister, who's "a lot smarter than you" and has invented the duo's often unreliable mode of transportation, the universe-hopping Astrocap. Together, they evade the clutches of Kernel Antlers, a furious green moose whose catchphrase is "I am gonna fry you!" The chase makes stops in universes that spoof Charles Dickens and Harry Potter, one in which "lava is actually lukewarm pizza sauce," and another in which everyone uses "ginormous" old cell phones. (Yet another confronts the protagonists with the classic time-travel dilemma of whether to clobber the adorable baby moose version of their nemesis.) Quizzes, puzzles, and even an affidavit give readers a chance to catch their breath while taking in punch-line pile-ups and fourth-wall smackdowns, which together offer all the pleasures of gulping from a comic firehose. Ages 7-10. Agent: Caryn Wiseman, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.)

Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

School Library Journal

Gr 3-6—In this zany graphic novel, a two-headed chicken learns the basics of multiverse travel. One of our hero's heads is a stand-in for "you," the reader. The other is a science whiz who creates an Astrocap, a blue-and-red-antennaed beanie that allows its wearer to hop from world to world. Two-Headed Chicken launches across time and space to avoid being devoured by Kernel Antlers, a wily, chicken-hungry moose. However, obstacles and surprises await on every stop of this mission. Two-Headed Chicken travels through many universes—a pencil-drawn one, one where chickens drive cars, one in which our hero is the Mona Lisa, and so on. At each destination, Antlers is still in hungry pursuit. Will Two-Headed Chicken ever find a place to rest? In addition to the main story, this book has mazes, puzzles, activities, and various philosophical asides from a fish with a mustache. There is something fun for every reader! Ellis's colors are distinct and add much to the excitement. Angleberger writes the first chapter as a humorous primer on the concepts of the multiverse. The entire plot rests on what would be an incomprehensible stew of ideas in another creator's hands; however, Angleberger explains these ideas in a manner accessible to younger readers. The drawings and page layouts are frenetic, capturing all the excitement of this hilarious journey. VERDICT Readers who enjoy Aaron Blabey's Bad Guys series and Dav Pilkey's various universes will love this first book in what is sure to be a beloved series.—Jennie Law

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

You cannot go wrong with a book that has a chicken in it. This book has a two-headed chicken, so it is better. The only thing that could possibly improve such a book would be if it had a moose. This one has a moose. There is other stuff, too, but I am not going to tell you the whole thing. —Daniel Pinkwater, author of Kat Hats and Crazy in Poughkeepsie, neither of which has a chicken, but they're still good

Tom Angleberger brings his trademark cleverness and good-natured silliness to the graphic novel format. Never a dull moment with a chase across the multiverse—this book will keep you on your toes! —Jen Wang, New York Times best-selling creator of Stargazing

All Raul the Thirds in all possible universes love this book, and so will you. I guarantee it! —Raul the Third 2.0

Tom Angleberger
Rose Brock is a professor and educator at Sam Houston State University who has dedicated her career to turning young people into book lovers. Building relationships with readers through books is her superpower. In addition to her career as a librarian and educator, Dr. Brock is the cofounder of NTTBF, the North Texas Teen Book Festival, the largest library run book festival for young people in the country. Dr. Brock was awarded the Siddie Joe Johnson Award for Outstanding Service to Youth by the Texas Library Association. She is the editor of Hope Nation: Young Adult Authors Share Personal Moments of Inspiration and author of Young Adult Literature in Action: A Librarian's Guide. Visit her online at drrosebrock.com.

Follow her on Twitter @reallyrosebrock.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781536223217
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Walker Books Us
Publication date
August 20, 2022
Series
Two-Headed Chicken
BISAC categories
JUV053000 - Juvenile Fiction | Science Fiction
JUV008140 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Science Fiction
Library of Congress categories
Adventure and adventurers
Chickens
Science fiction
Graphic novels
Moose
Cartoons and comics
Comics (Graphic works)
Action and adventure comics
Multiverse

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