Timmy McAllister has a mom who makes him chocolate chip pancakes, a dad who plays the bass in a funk band, a bratty sister named Lindsay, and his very own ninja. The mom, the dad, and the sister have pretty much been around for his whole life; he ordered the ninja from the Jacques Company catalog a few weeks into fifth grade, when he decided that being picked on was getting old. And because nothing’s cooler than having your very own ninja, the social landscape of L. Frank Baum Elementary, in Cherry Creek, Indiana, undergoes a revolution. An “Original English Language” manga, Mail Order Ninja has very traditional manga-style artwork. However, it’s definitely American: Joshua Elder’s hilarious dialogue is peppered with pop culture references. “Son, owning a ninja is a big responsibility,” says Timmy’s dad, when the ninja arrives in the mail. “Remember what happened with the iguana?” “Oh, come on, dad,” says Timmy. “How was I to know it would just explode like that?” And, of course, when Timmy’s mom tells him to stop reading his comic book, Timmy responds with, “It’s not a comic book! It’s a graphic novel! Jeez!” This is a fun book that’s definitely doing what Tokyopop set out to do with their OEL line: make manga-style books that will appeal to the manga-reading audience, but that are also appropriate through-and-through for younger kids.
Mail Order Ninja Volume 1
by Joshua Elder
ISBN: 1598167286
Tokyopop , 2006
