Written and Illustrated by Obert Skye
Inside Roberto’s closet is everything he has thrown away or broken over the years since he’s lived in his house, including the books his parents gave him and he’ll never read and his makeshift laboratory science experiments. One day, he starts hearing strange sounds and a weird smell coming from his closet. When he opens up the door, he discovers a creature that’s a hybrid between two book characters created by a strange mix of chemicals that spilled from his experiments. His name is Wonkenstein (Willy Wonka and Frankenstein). Roberto has to go to great lengths to hide his creature in order to prevent getting into huge trouble with his parents. Will he succeed in keeping Wonkenstein a secret from his parents? What will Roberto do about his new friend?
The characters are well-developed and entertaining. The plot is funny and well-written. The illustrations are funny and will appeal to Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans. Readers who like Jeff Kinney’s books, realistic fiction, science fiction, and adventure will enjoy reading this book.
Review by Jessica Moody, Olympus Jr. High Media Center
Rating: ★★★★★ (5 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 4-8
www.abituneven.com (Obert Skye – Official Website)
Wonkenstein: The Creature from My Closet
Written and Illustrated by Obert Skye
Henry Holt / Christy Ottaviano Books
224 pages
Release Date: September 27, 2011
ISBN: 9780805092684 (hardcover)
This is indeed a fun book with comic illustrations that will definitely appeal to fans of series like Wimpy Kid and Origami Yoda. It’s not quite as good as either of those, but still worth getting. I also like that it may inspire kids to pick up the older books it references.