Nuts in Space

Dolan follows Weasels with another goofy, geeky spoof, this time tipping her hat to The Odyssey, Star Wars, and Star Trek, with a little Tolkien included for good measure. Having secured the “Lost Nuts of Legend,” the Forest Fleet’s finest starship crew is out of food, out of patience, and determined to get home. But after one of the ravenous crewmembers eats the map, the crew has to navigate the old-fashioned way: by asking for directions. Throwing the Prime Directive to the winds, the crew sows mayhem at locales that include a nut-free planet full of allergic aliens and a Death Banana populated with monkey storm troopers. Dolan skillfully choreographs her densely populated and detailed spreads with an array of compositional tricks, using short text blocks to help readers track the story. She shows no signs of slowing down as a joke machine: there are dialogue bubbles galore to giggle over, as well as visual nudges: note that the Vader-like leader of the Death Banana has a coffee mug that reads, “World’s Best Evil Overlord.” Ages 5–8. (May)