by Joy Keller (Author) Ashley Belote (Illustrator)
A young slime scientist is surprised when her latest creation comes to life in Frankenslime, a funny and clever picture book twist on Frankenstein.
Victoria Franken is a slime scientist. Her experiments lead to amazing slimes. Until, one dark and stormy night, her latest experiment goes awry and her newest creation comes to life! Joy Keller's clever text and Ashley Belote's humor-filled art combine to create a fun picture book twist on horror movies like Frankenstein and The Blob, that also explores the scientific method and the importance of recording observations and results. The author has also included a couple of Victoria's best slime recipes, although you'll notice the secret formula that brought her slime to life is missing.
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Taking cues from classic fright films, Keller introduces "slime scientist" Victoria Frankenstein, who is Black. Bored with her past successes, STEM-inclined Victoria and her trusty pup sidekick, Igor, concoct never-seen formulations that local kids line up for, including rainbow cloud slime and a glow-in-the-dark zombie slime. But when inspiration-and lightning-both strike one night in Victoria’s attic lab, she and Igor have to flee their latest oozing creation, yelling "IT’S ALIVE!" Luckily, the new monster, more helpful than hellish, joins Victoria’s experiment team. Belote fills scenes with humorous details, including beaker labels and lists that appear on Victoria’s blackboard wall. Horror movie-flavored suspense keeps readers on the edge of their seats, and young scientists will appreciate the slime recipes included in the back matter. Ages 4-7.
Copyright 2021 Publisher’s Weekly, LLC Used with permission.
With the help of her canine lab partner, Igor, scientist Victoria Franken creates varieties of slime that excite and amaze. One night, after Victoria comes up with a new idea, she and Igor return to the lab and begin experimenting. This time, their hard work results in a slime like no other. Persistent Victoria never gives up trying to perfect her recipes even after multiple failures. Most pages have no more than three to four lines of text. The font is very easy to read. On some of the pages, the author breaks up the text and uses ellipses, resulting in a fast-paced, suspenseful narrative. Victoria is Black, and illustrations include children from different cultures and a girl in a wheelchair. Three slime recipes appear at the end of the book with clear step-by-step instructions. This title is great for group read-alouds or independent reading. The story is entertaining, and kids are sure to get a kick out of the detailed illustrations, which also include sticky notes, diagrams, and lists that Victoria has hung up all over her lab. VERDICT Highly recommended for all picture book collections.
Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Joy Keller is the author of several children's books, including Fungus is Among Us!, Miss Turie's Magic Creatures, and Monster Trucks. When she isn't writing stories or studying weird science, she can be found teaching fourth graders about writing and science, instead. She lives in New York with her husband, kids, and cats.
Ashley Belote is an independent illustrator living and working in Davidson, North Carolina. She has a background in traditional animation under the direction of Don Bluth. She earned her BA from Alderson Broaddus University and her MA in Arts Administration from the University of Kentucky. Her graduate study included a children's literature and illustration course through Simmons College.