The bad guys, episode 4: Apocalypse meow by Aaron Blabey

Scholastic, 2016. ISBN 9781760158774
(Age: 6-10) Highly recommended. Humour, Adventure, Zombies. Another outing for the good guys, once bad guys now trying to repair their images: Mr Shark, Mr Fox, Mr Piranha, Mr Snake and Mr Spider, as they grapple with the phenomena of zombie kittens. We find them standing on each other's shoulders, Mr Shark's feet firmly planted in a baby swimming pool (because the kittens are frightened of water)surrounded by millions of cheesy looking kittens, all showing their sharp teeth to advantage. The five heroes recall that their arch enemy, a guinea pig called Dr Marmalade is the one who created these monsters and are determined to find him. But Granny Gumby, an inventor knows how to mix an antidote so needs the boys to capture and bring a live zitten to her. All seems quite straight forward but in the hands of superb illustrator and writer, Blabey, the pun and games come thick and fast as he navigates the boys through some tricky scenarios. His use of comic techniques works well as the eye is drawn across each page, taking in the humour of the illustrations and textual wit. I love the drawings of the five heroes, their faces alive with the possibility that they could be eaten by the zittens while Mr Piranha's reticence at diving into sea water (I am a freshwater fish!) is hilarious. But their enemy creates zombie dogs and dolphins, so necessitating our heroes to look further afield for a pristine environment, so with their eyes on the moon, the fifth in the series will shortly be launched.
All good fun with delightfully funny drawings to attract the lower primary readers these books will not be on the shelf for long.
Fran Knight