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The adventures of Captain Underpants : an epic novel
1997
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When George and Harold hypnotize their principal into thinking that he is the superhero Captain Underpants, he leads them to the lair of the nefarious Dr. Diaper - (Baker & Taylor)

When George and Harold hypnotize their principal into thinking that he is the superhero Captain Underpants, he leads them to the lair of the nefarious Dr. Diaper, where they must defeat his evil robot henchmen. - (Baker & Taylor)

Captain Underpants, the former school principal turned crime-fighting, wedgie-dodging superhero, uses his wacky talents to outwit the evil Dr. Diaper. By the author of the Dumb Bunnies series. - (Baker & Taylor)

Laugh out loud with Captain Underpants, the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Dav Pilkey, the creator of Dog Man!
- (Scholastic)

Fourth graders George Beard and Harold Hutchins are a couple of class clowns. The only thing they enjoy more than playing practical jokes is creating their own comic books. And together they've created the greatest superhero in the history of their elementary school: Captain Underpants! His true identity is SO secret, even HE doesn't know who he is!
- (Scholastic)

Author Biography

When Dav Pilkey was a kid, he was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. Dav was so disruptive in class that his teachers made him sit out in the hallway every day. Luckily, Dav loved to draw and make up stories. He spent his time in the hallway creating his own original comic books -- the very first adventures of Dog Man and Captain Underpants.

In college, Dav met a teacher who encouraged him to write and illustrate for kids. He took her advice and created his first book, World War Won, which won a national competition in 1986. Dav made many other books before being awarded the California Young Reader Medal for Dog Breath (1994) and the Caldecott Honor for The Paperboy (1996).

In 2002, Dav published his first full-length graphic novel for kids, called The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby. It was both a USA Today and New York Times bestseller. Since then, he has published more than a dozen full-length graphic novels for kids, including the bestselling Dog Man and Cat Kid Comic Club series.

Dav's stories are semi-autobiographical and explore universal themes that celebrate friendship, empathy, and the triumph of the good-hearted.

When he is not making books for kids, Dav loves to kayak with his wife in the Pacific Northwest.

- (Scholastic)

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Trade Reviews

Booklist Reviews

Gr. 2^-4. The title and the cover art, which depicts a toothy, egg-shaped fellow in a red cape and jockey shorts, are designed to keep this chapter book in constant circulation. The story is a superhero spoof: two misbehaving fourth-grade boys, Harold and George, hypnotize their school principal and turn him into their comic book creation, Captain Underpants. The boys have their hands full when the captain escapes and starts chasing bad guys in his underwear. The extra leading and slightly enlarged typeface make for easier reading, but the silliness goes overboard (picture villainous Dr. Diaper staring at a pile of rubber doggy doo), and the many action-packed illustrations rob the plot of some of its zip by commanding more than their share of attention. (The flip book pages seem clever, but they're really just a tease). Still, the humor is on target for some kids in this age group, who will undoubtedly look forward to a planned second adventure--Captain Underpants 2: Attack of the Talking Toilets. ((Reviewed July 1997)) Copyright 2000 Booklist Reviews

Criticas Online Reviews

Gr 3-5-Tra-la-la-la! When George Beard and Harold Hutchins hypnotize their crabby principal into believing he's a superhero, the sparks start to fly. Mr. Krupp, aka Captain Underpants, begins chasing bad guys in his unmentionables and manages to thwart the dastardly Dr. Diaper. No edifying message here but great fun for kids, especially young, reluctant readers who will fall in love with the friendly format and goofy illustrations.-Cheryl Scheer, Denver P.L., CO Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Horn Book Guide Reviews

Best friends and fellow pranksters George and Harold create a comic book superhero, Captain Underpants, and hypnotize their school principal into assuming his identity. Clad in cape and jockey shorts, Principal Krupp foils bank robbers and a mad scientist until the boys ""de-hypnotize"" him. Written in a tongue-in-cheek style and illustrated with suitably cartoonish drawings, the story is consistently laugh-out-loud funny. Copyright 1998 Horn Book Guide Reviews

Horn Book Guide Reviews

This edition of book one in the series now features watercolor blues, greens, yellows, purples, and reds. For the most part, the color doesn't compete for attention with the text. That said, hardly an inch of blank space remains, especially in the comics that George and Harold draw. The effect is now more splashy Sunday comics than sketchy drawn-by-kids serial.

Publishers Weekly Reviews

Few things command disrespect like the sight of a man wearing whitie-tighties. However, the bald and barefoot Captain Underpants happens to be a superhero. As one character notes, "Most superheroes look like they're flying around in their underwear....Well, this guy actually is flying around in his underwear!" The Captain, defender of "Truth, Justice, and all that is Pre-Shrunk and Cottony," is the comic-book invention of two troublemaking fourth-graders, George and Harold. He comes to life after the boys use a mail-order device to hypnotize their diabolical school principal, who sheds his outergarments and battles crime in only a cape and Y-fronts. As his creators try to snap him out of the trance, Captain Underpants threatens bank robbers with "Wedgie Power" and foils the villainous Dr. Diaper (" `You know,' said George, `up until now this story was almost believable' "). Pilkey (Dog Breath) uses a sitcom-like formula to set up the rivalry between the boys and the principal, and to strip the authority figure of dignity. After a tepid exposition, he falls back on the notion that undies and mild bathroom humor are funny in themselves and, given his intended audience, he's probably right. Line drawings of the slapstick action appear on every page, and "Flip-O-Rama" climactic sequences create an agreeably corny "motion-picture" effect. But the lowbrow jokes (the Captain uses an elastic waistband to apprehend an evildoer) chiefly constitute this tale's harmless, non-gross appeal. Ages 8-12. (Sept.) Copyright 1998 Publishers Weekly Reviews

School Library Journal Reviews

Gr 2-5-Pilkey packs an amazing amount of humor into what could have been a one-gag novel. Besides turning their principal into a silly superhero, George and Harold play tricks on just about everyone. They pepper pom-poms, put bubble bath in tubas, and fill a football with helium. Pilkey's illustrations are half the fun, and that magical moment when the hypnotized Principal Krupp dons his Captain Underpants uniform and sings "Tra-La-Laaaaaaaa" is priceless. Krupp is a worthy successor to Lamar J. Spurgle, the nemesis of "the Cut-Ups" in James Marshall's great picture books. The "kneel here" sign in front of his desk says it all. Kid Appeal Award: Superheroes are always fascinating to kids. And children of a certain age will laugh at anything that has to do with underpants. Combining the two was a stroke of comic genius. Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal Reviews

Gr 2-4 Pilkey plays with words and pictures, providing great entertainment. The story is immediately engaging two fourth-grade boys who write comic books and who love to pull pranks find themselves in big trouble. Mean Mr. Krupp, their principal, videotapes George and Harold setting up their stunts and threatens to expose them. The boys' luck changes when they send for a 3-D Hypno-Ring and hypnotize Krupp, turning him into Captain Underpants, their own superhero creation. Later, Pilkey includes several pages of flip-o-ramas that animate the action. The simple black-and-white illustrations on every page furnish comic-strip appeal. The cover features Captain Underpants, resplendent in white briefs, on top of a tall building. This book will fly off the shelves. Mary M. Hopf, Los Angeles Public Library Copyright 1998 School Library Journal Reviews

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