Pablo and Splash: Time-Traveling Penguins
Sheena Dempsey
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published September 3, 2023
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About Pablo and Splash: Time-Traveling Penguins
Join time-traveling penguins Pablo and Splash on an unexpected adventure to the time of the dinosaurs in this hilarious full-color graphic novel, perfect for fans of Dog Man and InvestiGators.
Antarctic penguins Pablo and Splash are polar opposites and besties for life. Pablo is a home-bird and a careful planner. Splash is easily bored and hungry for adventure. Sick to her flippers of the harsh, freezing weather, Splash persuades Pablo to go on a beach vacation with her. When they accidentally find themselves in a scientist’s time machine, they end up on the beach….back in the age of dinosaurs! Can Pablo and Splash make their way home before they become dino snacks?
This full-color graphic novel is perfect for animal lovers, reluctant readers, and graphic novel fans!
My Review
This is a fun read. The story follows the duo Pablo (the practical, methodical penguin) and Splash (the creative dreamer) as they decide they need a vacation from the bitter cold of Antarctica. The character differences between the two penguins make for a lot of humorous moments and silliness that young readers will appreciate.
What could make a graphic novel about penguins even more fun? If you said dinosaurs, then this is the perfect book for you. Haha! What’s wild is that immediately when I saw this book, I thought of my nephew, who loves both penguins and dinosaurs and is going to think this is a hoot. So, weirdly, it’s not as niche a market as one might initially think.
Dino lovers will also appreciate that the dinosaur species are easily identifiable, and the story includes a bit of trivia about a few of the prehistoric animals that appear in the story. There are also a few facts about different prehistoric periods, with maps showing changes in land masses.
The book is about 220 pages, so it’s comparable to the length of the InvestiGators series books. Readers looking for a light, goofy graphic novel will get exactly that, with bonus science facts here and there.
This is definitely one I’ll keep around for the late elementary-aged readers in my life.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 7 to 10.
Representation
Main characters are a boy and girl penguin. There’s a female scientist who appears briefly.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.
Romance/Sexual Content
None.
Spiritual Content
None.
Violent Content
Situations of peril. The penguins run from a scientist who appears to try to capture them. The capsule they hide in takes them on a journey with a destination of the sun, and they panic as the interior of the ship gets hotter and hotter before they’re able to change course.
Drug Content
None.
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