Horn Book Review
The book begins with a girl surveying the damage--crumbled streets, an airborne bus, etc.--caused by the prizewinning robot she built for a science fair. To stop the robot, she creates a giant toad--without fully considering the consequences. The book has some droll understated moments ("I probably shouldn't have given it a superclaw...") and tantalizingly foreboding industrial-hued digital illustrations resembling animated-movie stills. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Santat's brilliantly hued digital illustrations are the perfect foil for Barnett's almost-wordless tale of a science project gone awry. When the bespectacled heroine surveys the post-apocalyptic opening scene, the speech bubbles tell the tale"Oh no...oh man...I knew it." Like a 1950s B-movie, complete with the widescreen boundaries, the drama of her prize-winning robot stalking New York is one part cautionary tale and many parts over-the-top humor. When she screams, "HEY, ROBOT! KNOCK IT OFF ALREADY!" the page turn shows her shaky, understated realization, "I should have given it ears." In a world where technology progresses rapidly and consequences are often not anticipated, this lesson in "I should have" is subtle, never preachy and always action-packed. Comic-book, picture-book and movie styles come together in a well-designed package that includes a movie poster on the reverse side of the jacket, an old-time computation book as the inside cover and detailed scientific drawings on the endpapers. The Japanese subtitles and translations on the pages before the title add to the fun. The only thing missing are the 3-D glasses! A must-have. (Picture book. 4-10)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
