Review by Booklist Review
In this droll story, four little chicks use their new spy kits (observation logs, binoculars, fake mustaches, and string-of-marshmallow belts) to investigate a mystery, namely, what animal lurks in the new backyard cage? A thunderstorm tests their survival skills, but in the end, the mystery is solved. An introduction and an epilogue contributed by canine detective J. J. Tully frame the story and introduce the four main characters. Readers may find themselves returning to those introductory pages to sort out, say, which chick is Sugar and which is Dirt (not to mention Poppy and Sweetie). Whether the fuzzy yellow siblings are slinging gumshoe lingo or just squabbling, the dialogue is amusing. Ramping up the comedy, the grayscale illustrations are at their riotous best once the chicks go into action in full camo mode, wearing their mustaches and marshmallow belts. Another amusing addition to the Chicken Squad series of beginning chapter books.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This third book in the Chicken Squad series finds the investigative team of Dirt, Sugar, Poppy, and Sweetie trying to solve a mystery involving a box made of wood and wire that has appeared in the yard. Dirt, whose mix of no- nonsense gruffness and utter incompetence offers big laughs throughout the story, is certain that it's a "top-secret maximum-security box" and that "we are all in imminent danger." Luckily, cooler (and more logical) heads prevail, and the truth turns out to be a lot fluffier. Gilpin's black-and-white spot illustrations adeptly replicate the look Kevin Cornell established in the previous books as Cronin humorously explores the differences between facts and speculation, spying and observing, and rain and other things that sprinkle. Ages 7-10. Author's agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. Illustrator's agency: Shannon Associates. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-The short, fuzzy, yellow chick detectives are back for another misadventure in this lip-bitingly funny series entry by the author of The Trouble with Chickens (HarperCollins, 2011), which stars the chicks' ex-police dog pal, J.J. Tully. As in past installments, the hard-boiled Tully introduces readers to Barbara's backyard and the motley crew of pet chicks who spend their days investigating oddities, devising plans, staking out suspicious characters, and generally causing an adorable ruckus. Once again, know-it-all Sugar leads the way, roping her siblings into spying on a strange new box in the yard-could it be a shark?! Though levelheaded Dirt drolly deduces that their new neighbor is a rabbit, Sugar, Sweetie, and Poppy are convinced that the new creature is up to no good. When the hatch door is found open, the squad goes on a search-and-contain mission, armed with marshmallows. Gilpin's comically expressive black-and-white drawings pepper almost every page, and the typeface is generously sized, making this an ideal series for newly independent readers. The slight sarcasm, witty banter, and sly observations in the style of old-time noir films will have adults chuckling right alongside kid readers. VERDICT This volume, along with the previous books in the series, is an essential purchase for chapter book collections.-Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
In the poultry quartets third misadventure (The Chicken Squad, rev. 5/14; The Case of the Weird Blue Chicken, rev. 11/14), the goodhearted and demented chicks Dirt, Sugar, Poppy, and Sweetie investigate their latest mystery. What is that new structure in the corner of the yard, and who lives there? For some reason, based on chicken logic, discovering the answers to these questions involves false mustaches, flip charts, and the writing of poetry. Once the young detectives figure out that the newcomer is a rabbit, the mystery turns into an altruistic, if daft, rescue mission. Cronin is a master of comic misunderstandings and parallel conversations that will never meet. Readers new to chapter books will relish how we get to know each of the main characters through action and dialogue and will find out about spy techniques while enjoying the satisfying heft of words such as surveillance and hypothesis. Gilpin rises admirably to the challenge of portraying such scenes as a chicken doing the backstroke while wearing a marshmallow life preserver. sarah ellis (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
