Bone volume 2: The Great Cow Race by Jeff Smith

Synopsis: The Bone brothers were reunited at the end of volume one, and at the beginning of this one, they are about to hit the road back to Boneville. However, Phoney Bone gets into trouble again by trying to scam the villagers in the Great Cow Race. Mixed up in all of this, of course, are the rat creatures, who are still looking for Phoney Bone. A few more mysteries are revealed about Rose and her granddaughter, Thorn, which make one suspect that there is more to Thorn than is immediately evident.

Rating: Pure genius. I nominate Jeff Smith for a Nobel.

Opinion: Jeff Smith is a genius of comedic timing; of mystery to keep the interest; and of – not to mention – the pure beauty and charm of the illustrations. When Fone Bone climbs the tree to get a honey comb for Thorn and discovers the giant bee guarding the bee hive, I laughed out loud (it doesn’t sound funny when I describe it, but trust me, it is!). The two rat creatures that keep arguing about quiches are back and just as hilarious. I adore this series so much that I think I may have to buy it.

Bone volume 1: Out from Boneville by Jeff Smith

Synopsis: The Bone brothers, Fone, Phoney, and Smiley, have been kicked out of Boneville for one of Phoney’s hairbrained schemes. They get lost in the desert, separated, and all end up in a strange valley inhabited with other animals, scary rat creatures, and a red dragon (in whom nobody believes). Fone is the main character, and most of the story follows him trying to find his two cousins with the help of a tiny green bug named Ted, a girl named Thorn and her cow-racing Gran’ma Ben.

Rating: Brilliant!

Opinion: Not only are the pictures beautifully drawn, the story is humorous, engaging, and endearing. The characters each have well-rounded personalities, and you care about what happens to them, even Phoney Bone (whose only endearing characteristic is the fact that Fone Bone cares about him). There’s a lot of humor to it, too – I laughed out loud during the scene where they are running through a cloud of locusts (“Whatever you do – don’t stick out your tongue! Pitt! Poo! Yuck!”). What really keeps the story going, though, are the little mysteries – why did the Bone cousins get thrown out of Boneville? Why does the red dragon keep rescuing Fone Bone from the rat creatures, and why does no one in the valley believe that the dragon exists? What are the rat creatures, anyway? Not all of these questions are answered in this volume, which is why I can’t wait to read volume 2. This book is brilliant. Go directly to the library, do not pass go, etc. Or the bookstore if your library doesn’t have it.