Pilkey, Dav. The Adventures of Captain Underpants. New York: Scholastic Inc., 1997.
Summary:
The plot of this lighthearted adventure revolves around George and Harold, and their principal Mr. Krupp. When George and Harold play a practical joke that causes the school's football team to lose their game, Mr. Krupp forces George and Harold to serve him in exchange for not telling the school who played the practical joke. After a few weeks of this, the boys use a hypno-ring to hypnotize Mr. Krupp into giving them the video evidence of them playing the joke. They also decide to hypnotize their principal into believing that he is Captain Underpants, the superhero of the comic books drawn by George and Harold. Mr. Krupp, now Captain Underpants, goes to fight crime and the villian Dr. Diaper, and George and Harold must find a way to turn him back into Mr. Krupp.
My Impressions:
This book definitely caters to the sense of humor and minds of young boys, with the superhero running around in his underwear, and the villian being foiled by fake doggie doo-doo. In addition, the book plays to the stereotypical dislike that young boys have towards their principal, particularly if they are troublemakers like George and Harold. Pilkey seems to have based the two boys on himself, as he once was young boy who spent more time drawing and playing jokes than he did on his studies. Given this, he has written a book that will appeal to boys who, otherwise, would probably not want to spend time reading or be able to devote the focus required to read a book. While the content may be considered inappropriate to some adults, for young boys it is just what is needed to grasp their attention.
Suggestions for the use of this book:
This book is definitely a good suggestion for boys who don't like to read. It can also be used in any storytime about superheroes, as a humorous alternative to the classic ones.
Reviews:
Review of The Adventures of Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey. Publisher's Weekly, June 9, 1997.
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.
Review of The Adventures of Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey. School Library Journal, February 1, 2000.
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.
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