Spaghetti Book Club - Book Reviews by Kids for Kids

In the beginning of Melvin Beederman Superhero, Melvin is living in sunny Los Angeles. Wait a second, in the real beginning of Melvin Beederman Superhero, Curse of the Bologna Sandwich by Greg Trine, Melvin did not think he was a good superhero even though he graduated top of his class at the Superhero Academy. The worst thing was that he was getting bullied by Superhero Carl, another graduate. Carl is jealous of Melvin. Melvin was assigned to Los Angeles to be a superhero. The first thing he did when he got there was to find a hideout, an abandoned treehouse. Things were running smoothly until he heard a cry for help. Once he got off the ground (that usually takes him five tries) he flew faster than a speeding bullet to rescue a baby in a monster truck rally. He zoomed down and saved the baby, but after, noticed that his cape was dirty. Getting your cape dirty was against the superhero code so he had to bring it to the cleaners. When he picked up his cape it had apparently shrunk. Melvin couldn’t use his powers, but the worst part was that the McNasty Brothers had just escaped from prison. Without his powers, he would never be able to stop them. One time he tried to stop a bad guy without his powers and instead of being faster than a speeding bullet, he was slower than one. Just before he got away, Candace, a girl from New York, that had gotten Melvin’s cape by mistake, zoomed in and tackled the thief. After the police arrived he realized that Candace had his cape. Since she did such a good job he made her his partner. Their first mission was to catch the McNasty Brothers. Together will they save Los Angeles? Read Melvin Beederman Superhero the Curse of the Bologna Sandwich to find out.

I like this book because it is funny. My favorite part was when Melvin finished superhero practice and when they were walking back, they stopped for a sandwich. When his friend James picked up a slice of bologna and offered it to Melvin, Melvin fell to the ground and Melvin gasped, “Can’t ….move …get …me …out…of….here.” This scene is when Melvin discovered his weakness. Every superhero has one. My favorite illustration was when Melvin saved the baby from being crushed by a monster truck. I like this because the illustrations show what happens in comic book form. If feels like you are looking at an action movie. For instance the first scene shows Melvin flying through the air looking shocked to see a baby in the middle of a monster truck rally. In the next he zoomed in and grabbed the baby. The funniest part is the baby’s facial expression. He is smiling even when he was about to be crushed by a monster truck. My favorite character is Melvin because he somehow always makes math fun. He always says that math is his favorite subject. For instance in one part when he is flying over a beach looking for a hideout he says, there are 143 red bathing suits and 117 blue bathing suits. That makes 260 bathing suits. Another reason that I like him is that he always has a plan. In one part the McNasty Brothers have him tied up in an old apartment building that’s going to be knocked down next week. They put bologna in a sandwich to stop him from saving his partner who is also tied up. He eats bologna knowing it’s his weakness, faints, wakes up, and saves his partner. The whole book is very entertaining and I wanted to read more.

I would recommend this book to second to fourth graders because it is not too long, but not too short. The text isn’t that hard either. You should definitely read it if you are into superheroes. I really like the characters, the plot and the pictures and I think you will enjoy them too. There are 8 books in the series so start with Melvin Beederman, Curse of the Bologna Sandwich.