The Stupendous Switcheroo #2: Born to Be Bad

by Mary Winn Heider, Chad Sell

Overview

Switch and his heroic crew of rag-tag, superpowered kids are back! And this highly illustrated sequel has one mission: Operation Jailbreak (to Rescue the Parents who were Wrongfully Jailed by a Hero who Might Actually Turn Out to be the Real Villain?!)

The Stupendous Switcheroo—Switch for short—used to idolize legendary superhero Vik Valor. He wanted to be just like him: a hero. But now that he has finally gotten used to waking up with new powers every day, Switch isn’t so sure that Mr. Valor is one of the good guys. How could he be, if he put all of Switch's new friends’ parents (who happen to be famous supervillains) in jail?

Switch is left with only one course of action: Operation Jailbreak. Switch will have to get their families back, if he ever wants to find out the truth about Vik Valor—and himself. What else can you do if the good guys aren't really good? And if your parents are villains, were you born to be bad?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593427354
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	05/07/2024
Series:	The Stupendous Switcheroo , #2
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	124 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Mary Winn Heider’s other books include The Mortification of Fovea Munson and The Losers at the Center of the Galaxy. Along with composer Justin Huertas, Mary Winn also co-wrote a musical version of FOVEA, which has a surprising number of singing zombie frogs in it! She changes her mind a lot, but if she could have a superpower right now, it would be to play every musical instrument. Mary Winn lives in Chicago with one husband, one intern cat, and eleven billion books.

Chad Sell is a lifelong lover of superhero comics and movies. He has worked on two graphic novel series for children: THE CARDBOARD KINGDOM and DOODLEVILLE. Chad co-writes and illustrates THE CARDBOARD KINGDOM with a team of collaborators, and he is the sole creator of DOODLEVILLE. If he had a superpower, Chad would like the ability to talk with animals. Chad lives in Connecticut with his husband and two cats.

Editorial Reviews

"Equal parts heartfelt and action-packed." —Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2024-02-17
A high-stakes heist requires training, trust, and unpredictable talents.

In this second series entry, the Stupendous Switcheroo appears on the TV news, accused of attacking public icon Vin Valor. But Switcheroo has friends on his side, including brilliant inventor Tana, Mr. Meatballs the cat, and doting robot Al. Switcheroo pitches a plan to his friends, hoping to rescue his mom and the other parents Valor has jailed, but Tana isn’t sure the others will trust her. After all, she helped put their parents away in the first place, before she figured out what was wrong at Valor Tech. The group’s jailbreak brainstorming helps readers catch up on everyone’s powers, and single-page profiles provide greater detail about the cast. Switcheroo still gains a new power each day, from bunny ears with super-hearing to passing through solid objects, all the while becoming a little more intuitive about how they work. Cooking together helps the group de-stress and celebrate small victories on the way to the big showdown with Valor’s forces. Splashes of green on the monochrome pages highlight elements of each character, as well as the protagonists’ tailored costumes (“Do you know how few clothes have tail-holes???”). The cast members’ learning to trust one another and express their stress without surrendering to negativity feels like a superpower in its own right, though the many creative superpowers are fun to behold, too.

Equal parts heartfelt and action-packed. (process note, alternate covers, character art) (Graphic adventure. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews