Adventure Duck vs Power Pug by Steve Cole

Illus. Aleksei Bitskoff. Orchard Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781408356838.
(Age: 6+) Recommended. Themes: Superpowers, Humour, Good vs evil. Imagine a meteor lands and the impact creates a surge of energy that transforms animals nearby into over-charged versions of themselves with powers that defy reason . . . and that is the premise to this book. When an ordinary duck, living an ordinary life in a local duck pond, (A Duck, self-named as Adventure Duck) becomes the recipient of this excessive burst of 'super' and supreme influence, he also gets to team up with a mind-reading egg (with Eggstra-sensory Perception) and a striking Neon Zebra to bring their evil nemesis, Power Pug and his sidekick, Apocalypse Cow, to their knees.
This book does defy reason, but the extremely quirky characters with their bizarre powers are entertaining. The story is filled with mildly amusing puns and expressions that will appeal to young readers. With a second book to follow, ready to incorporate Adventure Duck's talents, young readers who enjoy humorous stories will be recommending this book to their friends.
This is not great literature, and the illustrations are suitably eccentric, but kids will be laughing as they read and will enjoy the super-charged hapless superhero.
Recommended for readers aged 6+.
Carolyn Hull