Two-Headed Chicken

3.5

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Author(s)

Tom Angleberger

Publisher

Walker Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

Release Date

August 31, 2022

ISBN

978-1536223217

Buy This Book

Anything is possible in the multiverse, including a madcap adventure starring a plucky two-headed chicken. But look out—there’s a chicken-hungry moose in pursuit! In this fourth wall–breaking graphic novel, our double-headed hero is chased through dozens of bizarre universes, from an ocean planet with a disturbing mermoose (that you can never unsee) to a world where chickens drive cars, and even to a land covered with . . . pizza sauce? With each BZOOP! of the universe-hopping Astrocap, the only thing to expect is the unexpected. Packed with jokes, quizzes, and games, the two-headed chicken’s wacky escapades will remind readers of such favorites as Dog Man and CatStronauts. Absurdist superstar Tom Angleberger makes his original graphic novel debut with this lightning-fast caper that will have readers laughing out loud and eager for each new page.

Editor review

1 review

Gooftastic Romp for Fans of Dog Man

October 31, 2022

Overall rating

3.5

Plot

3.0

Characters

3.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

4.0

The two-headed chicken is a brother and sister team, where the brother admits to not being that bright, and the sister is so smart that she invented the Astrocap time travel device. This is helpful in navigating the plethora of alternative universes, which all have goofy properties, and in escaping Kernal Antlers, an enraged green moose who is bound and determined to catch the chicken, fry them and eat them up! The chickens are as determined to escape as Antlers is to catch them, and the whole book is mainly the back and forth between the adversaries. There are a few other characters, like a fish with a mustache who suffers from an inferiority complex, and Granny Goosefoot, who pops in to tell stories. This frenetic romps takes our intrepid chickens to Olde London, outerspace, and into a monster movie universe, barely escaping being fried each time. Will they ever be able to make peace with Kernal Antlers?

Good Points

Angleberger is known best for his slightly quirky Origami Yoda series, but a decade ago also published such goofy titles as Fake Mustache and Horton Halfpott, or The Fiedish Mystery of Smugwick Manor, or, The Loosening of M'Lady Luggertuck's Corset. This graphic novel aims at a slightly younger audience who might enjoy the enthusiastic colors and exaggerated humor. This is certainly a story where lots of things happen right away, even though there isn't as much plot as one might expect. At one point, the "reader of this lousy book" tells the chickens "But it better be good, or I'm reading Stuntboy instead!" The chickens panic. "Oh, no! That book has an actual plot! And the pictures are 100 times better!" The pell mell style of the storyline is definitely reinforced by the chaotic pictorial style.

Thematically, this goes right along with Pilkey's Dog Man books, and will appeal to the same readers. Dog Man is fighting whatever evil he finds, but the two-headed chicken is concentrating on Kernal Antlers. Readalikes also include Trine's Melvin Beederman books and Eaton's Flying Beaver Brothers. I can see this being a popular choice among the elementary school crowd that appreciates a good fart reference as well as never ending knock knock jokes.