Nightmare of the Iguana

November 15, 2012
Tasked with driving a fearsome Dream Wasp away from Wendell, their nerdy reptilian buddy, Danny Dragonbreath and Suki the salamander crawl into his sleeping brain. Eeeww. So exhausted from lack of rest that he gets an A- on a test and reluctant to seek help from his New-Age mother ("No, Mom, not the kelp!"), Wendell turns in desperation to Danny's wise if mythological great-grandfather Dragonbreath for advice. Thus it is that Danny and Suki, with a "baku" (dream eater) in tow, are soon on their way. They stumble through dream chambers stuffed with mounds of unappetizing health food, run from monstrous school bullies and search zillions of books (Reasons That I Will Die of Shame if Suki Ever Finds Out I Like Her) on the way to climactically vanquishing the giant Wasp (eek) and smashing her slime-filled eggs (yuck). As in episodes past, Vernon tells the tale in a running mix of prose and green-highlighted drawings with dialogue balloons, slides in wisecracks galore and closes with a teaser for the next chapter (something involving "mutant thieves"). "It's impossible! It's unnatural! It's weird!" exclaims Suki. Readers will echo Danny's response: "Good enough for me!" (Graphic hybrid fantasy. 8-11)

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July 1, 2013
Iguana Wendell's nightmares are disrupting his sleep, so his friends enlist the help of Danny Dragonbreath's great-grandfather to explore inside Wendell's mind. They discover a Dream Wasp wreaking havoc, and the only solution is a Japanese dream-eater. Goofy humor and mild adventure pair perfectly with black, white, and green-tinged comic-style illustrations in an installment that's best for devoted fans.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)