First-time author Zappa (son of rock legend Frank) mines his childhood fear of things that go bump in the night for this mock-memoir of a "monsterminator"-in-training, with recipes. Eleven-year-old Minerva McFearless, or Mini, as she's called, and her brother, Max, nine, stumble upon their father's secret trade—eliminating monsters. For years, they study his encyclopedic Monstranomicon
, a talking, biting (female) book that contains information about all manner of evil beast and "defensive recipes" on how to defeat them. Mini also learns to speak Monstrosity, the native tongue of Grumplemisers, Glorches and the Howleewoof who relishes "children con carne." This stealthy self-teaching comes in handy when their widower father is kidnapped by agents of the Zarmaglorg
, "the king of evil," who resides in faraway Castle Doominstinkinfart. With a cantankerous one-eyed coyote named Mr. Devilstone leading the way, a perilous trip to rescue Dad is on. The reptilian-skin look of the cover, Zappa's lively monster doodles and photo-illustrations of the main characters in key scenes, add kooky, creepy graphic appeal to the McFearless kids' escapades. A B-movie aesthetic keeps the narrative from being truly scary, and the repeated references to barfing, slime, blood and guts make this ideal summer reading for the crowd that's graduated from Captain Underpants. Ages 8-12. (July)
