Max the Mighty Superhero. (Max-a-Million, 2). Trina Wiebe. Illustrated by Helen Flook. Montreal, PQ: Lobster Press, 2003. 95 pp., pbk., $6.95. ISBN 1-894222-68-7. Subject Headings: Heroes-Juvenile fiction. Animal welfare-Juvenile fiction. Grades 1-4 / Ages 6-9. Review by Saache Heinrich. *** /4
	Max the Movie Director. (Max-a-Million, 3). Trina Wiebe. Illustrated by Helen Flook. Montreal, PQ: Lobster Press, 2003. 95 pp., pbk., $6.95. ISBN 1-894222-69-5. Subject Headings: Swindlers and swindling-juvenile fiction. Motion pictures-juvenile fiction. Grades 1-4 / Ages 6-9. Review by Saache Heinrich. *** /4

excerpt:

Sid stared at him blankly. “The classifieds?”

“That’s right.” Max did a gleeful dance and flapped the scrap of paper above his head. “This is from a lost puppy ad. This guy wants his puppy back a lot. In fact, he wants its so badly that he’s,”

“...offered a reward?” finished Sid. “I get it now. But why all the cloak and dagger stuff? Why couldn’t you pick up a paper and check out the classifieds like a normal person?”

“Because,” explained Max, “The classifies on Dad’s desk are for next week’s paper. That means nobody has seen them yet, so we’ve got a head start. We can find this dog, call the number, and collect the reward money before anyone else even knows it’s missing.”

“Isn’t that cheating?” asked Sid.

Max sniffed. “I prefer to call it using my brain.”

Sid groaned. “That brain of yours gets us into more trouble.”

“This time,” said Max, “I’ve got the perfect plan!” (From Max the Mighty Superhero.)

excerpt:

“Did you see the slime?” cried Max, his eyes wide with excitement. “It shot right out of his nose?”

“Yeah,”said Sid, munching popcorn. “Very cool.”

“Space Crusaders is my favourite movie,” Max declared. He stepped out of the dark theater into the afternoon sunshine. “It has everything. Spaceships and lasers and time portals and aliens. Don’t you just love it?”

Sid tilted her popcorn box into a nearby trash can. “Forget it,” she said. “Five times in two weeks is my limit.”

“But it’s the greatest movie ever made,” said Max. He pointed at the glossy movie poster hanging in the theatre window. “It says so right here.”

“Yeah, Yeah,” said Sid without looking.

“It’s a huge box office hit,” added Max. “It’s grossed over twenty million dollars during its opening,”

“...weekend,” finished Sid. “I know. You’ve mentioned that a hundred times, already.”

“Well, its true,” said Max. He stared wistfully at the movie poster. A drooling three-headed alien stared back at him. Twenty million dollars. In one weekend! The words were music to his ears. (From Max the Movie Director.)

In Max the Mighty Superhero, millionaire wanna-be Maximillian J. Wigglesworth III, returns in this second adventure in the “Max-a-million” series. In his newest pursuit in becoming a millionaire, Max, after seeing a news blurb on television, plots to become a superhero. When his efforts to become a local superhero prove fruitless, Max, joined by his faithful friend Sid [a.k.a. Serendipity Sunshine Stubberfield], pursues his fortune through answering lost dog ads in the local newspaper. After spying on a suspicious dog owner, Max uncovers a puppy mill. Adventures ensue as Max tries to uncover the truth behind the puppy mill and expose the dog owner while hoping to collect on a monetary reward.

     Max is back with this third installment in the series in Max the Movie Director. After entrusting his best friend, Sid, as well as twins Cora and Ivy Thompson, Max embarks on shooting a best-selling movie. As his direction wanders from one subject to another, Max stumbles upon a couple of con artists in a case of insurance fraud involving the twins’ father. Though things seldom go as planned for Max, he finally captures one of the cons on tape through an amusing sequence of events and is able to save the twins’ father’s reputation and business.

     These two books are both fun and appealing additions to Wiebe’s “Max-a-Million” series. Wiebe, author of the “Abby and Tess Pet-Sitters” series, has created another series that is sure to appeal to a similar audience. While these books follow a similar formula to Wiebe’s others, each story is presented in an appealing package to children. Although Max focuses on his own financial gains in all his endeavors, he always (sometimes unintentionally) ends up saving the day. He is a likeable and fun character about whom children will enjoy reading. The black and white pencil illustrations that appear within each chapter are humourous and are quite relevant to the events in the story. Max-a-Million has just the right amount of humour and mystery for a young reader.

Recommended.

Saache Heninrich is a children’s services librarian for the Saskatoon Public Library in Saskatoon, SK.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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