Of course, Jack wouldn't have to spend so much time fixing cars for his Uncle Bud if the man weren't playing mad scientist in his garage laboratory. The Doom Machine is set in a small town called Vern Hollow in 1956, and its hero is a boy who can fix just about anything, though he's prone to getting in trouble. What is unsurprising, considering his picture books, is that Mark Teague would write something funny. He is also the illustrator of Jane Yolen's How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? and sequels. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School, Pigsty, and Funny Farm are a few of the author-illustrator's best-known titles in recent years. But it's uncommon enough that I did a double take when I saw the name of the author on this book jacket. Mordicai Gerstein gave it a shot with his The Old Country a few years back, and Kevin Henkes has written some well-regarded books such as Olive's Ocean and Bird Lake Moon. Very few picture book illustrators end up writing middle grade fiction.
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