Reviews

Caveboy Dave: Not So Faboo by Aaron Reynolds, Phil McAndrew

destdest's review

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4.0

I knew I definitely wanted to read this after my raving review of the first book, here.

“Of course, there were still eight hours of daylight left … Plenty of time to go extinct before bedtime.”

STORY:
Wow, Dave is a brat in this book (it almost feels a bit out of character considering how meek he was in book one, but I suppose he was under a lot of pressure then), but I would be lying if I said it wasn’t entertaining. On the downside, I’m a little tired of the “boy doesn’t listen to smart girl due to stubbornness” story trope. That’s not a slight on the story though that’s just me.

Thankfully, this second book is less gross than the first but still light-hearted and funny with tender moments.

“Parents think they can protect you from everything. But they can’t. But man … it’s really nice to have them around trying.”

CHARACTERS:
A round of applause for dumb characters in kids’ media that actually contribute something meaningful to conversations without being annoying and still manage to be goofy. Now, if only sitcoms could learn how to balance this. I’m looking at you, Disney and Nickelodeon shows!

ART:
As always, the art walks a thin line of grotesque and Sunday morning comics' cute. There's a nice palette of earthy colors and then an entire section of cool blues that pleasing to see.

OVERALL:
Yes, I definitely recommend this, and I can’t wait for more in this series. Dave’s little caveman stories are fun and (while I don’t think every children’s story needs to teach a moral/have meaning) teaches good values without being preachy. Hopefully, this is a more subtle way for kids to learn without parental nagging.
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