Review by Booklist Review
Meet the Bins family of fraternal triplet raccoons, aka the Racc Pack: Dusty (the brains), ReRe (the muscle), and Scraps (the gadget guy who actually might be a possum). They live in Toronto and spend their evenings happily scavenging for food in raccoon-proof garbage bins, until they discover the motherlode: the dumpster of Well Bean, a health food store run by an evil and wasteful man. To pull off this heist, which will involve a barbed wire fence, keypad, lock, electric current, and surveillance cameras, they will need the help of a mysterious house cat burglar named JB. But even with deep racconnaissance, is it still a Mission Impawssible? While the story would benefit from more interspersed humor, and the plot isn't as streamlined as the heist genre typically provides, there are a handful of fun surprises and reveals along the ride. Gardner's anthropomorphized hero vermin are unsettlingly human-looking, a look that's cheerfully offset by background pops of burgundy, purple, and green. Overall, this middle-grade graphic novel is a swiftly moving adventure with a satisfying conclusion.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The Bins family, a trio of raccoon siblings, live in the attic of a human residence in Toronto's Kensington Market, a food-centric neighborhood rich with delectable dining establishments. De facto leader Dusty, muscular ReRe, and tech-savvy Scraps--a possum who believes he's a raccoon--have yet to meet a trash bin they can't open or a dumpster they can't dive into, much to the despair of Kensington residents. Following the grand opening of upscale grocer Well Bean, the siblings scheme to plunder the business's dumpster, where enormous quantities of perfectly edible food are discarded daily by order of CEO Jeff Bean. Discovering that Bean has installed a high-tech system guaranteed to keep critters at bay, the Bins family, aided by JB, a mysterious black cat with an ulterior motive, begin plotting the most daring garbage heist Toronto has ever seen. Ecological messaging surrounding food scarcity and community action ring true amid the humorously high-octane antics. Via expressive and vividly saturated cartooning by Gardner (Long Distance) and punchy text by Cooke (the Oh My Gods! series), the creators subtly raise awareness of waste prevention in this Mission Impossible--leaning graphic novel series launch. Ages 7--10. Author's agent: Maria Vicente, P.S. Literary. Illustrator's agent: Charlie Olsen, InkWell Management. (Jan.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A family of raccoons trying to survive the winter find themselves pulling the heist of a lifetime. On the streets of Toronto, Dusty, ReRe, and Scraps eke out a meager existence night to night, scavenging for scraps where they can get them. The mayor's new raccoon-proof garbage bins prove no match for the trio's brains and brawn, but food is getting harder to come by. When they discover a dumpster full of "ugly," misshapen produce at Well Bean (a Whole Foods--like market), the Racc Pack is beyond thrilled: This is more than enough to last the winter! But Well Bean's corrupt owner will stop at nothing to keep "vermin" out of his bins. Still, the Racc Pack won't back down. With the help of new friends and a whole lot of determination, will the raccoons be able to pull off Mission Impawssible? Will the evil Jeff Beans and his wasteful megacorporation get their comeuppance? The social issues (food waste, humanity vs. wildlife, corporate corruption, gentrification, etc.) underpinning the heist plot are treated lightly, for the most part; the Jeff Bezos analogue, on the other hand, will be hilariously obvious--at least to adults. The comic tone and high energy are served well by the bright, busy illustrations, and if the plot itself is a bit thin, the antics, plans, and potential future heists of the roguish raccoons are more than enough fun to make up for it. Human characters are diverse; Jeff Beans is tan-skinned. A dumpster's worth of laughs. (Graphic fiction. 7-10) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
