The King of Kazoo

Comic strip artist Feuti (Retail; Gil) populates his first graphic novel with hybrid bunny-humans, giving them clever lines and inventions such as the gonkless carriage, which runs by itself rather than being drawn by quadrupeds called gonks. The relationships are established in a slapstick sequence in which the king of the title, a narcissistic twit (“Ah, my subjects love me!”), bickers over the gonkless carriage with his long-suffering mechanic, Torq, and his daughter, Princess Bing. After an explosion on Mount Kazoo rocks the country, Bing, an aspiring magician whose bluebird familiar helps her see what is far away, organizes a trip to investigate. When they meet Quaf, the kingdom’s lost alchemist, Bing and Torq greet him like starry-eyed groupies. Unfortunately, Quaf is plotting to destroy the kingdom. Comic action and lots of maker talk (“Quafflestone roads! Fuse-Mortar Buildings!... The entire kingdom was built on the shoulders of my inventions,” boasts Quaf) add charm to this smart middle-grade comic. As a bonus, readers have the satisfaction of watching the king’s ego deflate after a few embarrassing defeats. Ages 7–10. Agent: Judith Hansen, Hansen Literary. (July)