To Kick a Corpse

May 1, 2016
Grades 3-6 The final outing of the Qwikpick Adventure Society (under that name, at least) reunites Dave, Lyle, and Marilla for a mission of delayed but righteous vengeance. Enraged to learn that the deceased former owner of a now-decrepit mansion on the edge of town was buried on the property standing up so that he could continue to supervise his slaves, mover and shaker Marilla sweeps her reluctant schoolmates into a surreptitious expedition to deliver the titular retribution. As with the previous episodes (purportedly found by Angleberger), Lyle's report on ensuing exchanges and events is formatted as a typescript, interspersed with frequent handwritten side comments and occasional drawings or snapshots. Along with presenting a picture of small-town lives transformed by the arrival of housing developments and superstores, the author offers a gigglefest of minor mishaps, often punctuated with grawlixes ( This @#&%*$% is the VILLAIN ) and climaxed not with a kick but a more pungent expression of disgust. A knee-slapper for fans of mildly transgressive humor.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Angleberger's back for another round of high-energy off-color humorneed we say more?(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)