Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 07/01/2019 The squirrely crew introduced in I Lost My Tooth (2018) returns here for hilarious, superhero-themed adventures. This time, a red-mask-and-underwear-clad Mystery Reader (Wink Squirrel) appears at opportune moments to sound out words and help his buddies gain confidence in their decoding skills. Later, when Zoom Squirrel claims to be the Mystery Reader, an understanding Wink provides him with his own blue-mask-and-underwear outfit because, after all, Zoom is a “real reader” and rather mysterious. The main story is accompanied by three reading-themed, “A-corny” jokes; a nonfiction section detailing early writing systems and books; and a short story in which Mo Squirrel explains his writing (and rewriting) process. Willems’ cartoony characters are as goofy and appealing as ever, and, despite the theme, the book never becomes didactic. The clueless squirrels fail to uncover the mystery readers’ identities, but beginning readers will certainly puzzle this out as they are enjoying comic conventions (speech bubbles, panels, varied font sizes, etc.) and frequent metafictional asides. Smart, sassy, and laugh-out-loud fun; Willems remains at the top of his game.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: It’s no mystery that young readers will scamper out of the woodwork for a new Mo Squirrel . . . er, Willems book. - Copyright 2019 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 10/01/2019 K-Gr 2—The gang from I Lost My Tooth is back in three episodic vignettes tied together by squirrels, puns, and acorn jokes. A group of squirrels halts before a red octagonal sign because they cannot read it. A squirrel enters wearing a red mask and underpants. He is the Mystery Reader and shows the other squirrels how to sound out words. Silliness follows as the squirrels try to figure out the Mystery Reader's identity (insert a joke told by anthropomorphized acorns). In the next sketch, Wonder Squirrel wonders what the first writing looked like. This is followed by actual facts about cuneiform and hieroglyphics. And another acorn joke. In the third sketch, two squirrels want to know how they got into the book and are told the story about Mo Squirrel and how ideas become a book. The concepts are a bit more sophisticated than Willems's previous series titles and the factual material is a higher reading level than the rest of the book. Still, the mashup of stories is oddly cohesive and has the feel of an animated cartoon. VERDICT Willems's fans will enjoy this offering. After all, who can resist a squirrel in underpants?–Kelly Roth, Bartow County Public Library, Cartersville, GA - Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.