On the Coffee Table: Maxwell Eaton III

Title: The Flying Beaver Brothers and the Evil Penguin Plan
Writer and Artist: Maxwell Eaton III

via Goodreads

Inspired by our daughter's recent penguin obsession, My Wife picked up this book.  It's possible there was a little lighthearted teasing involved.  Our Girl is not new to the idea of evil penguins, of course, being quite familiar with the Wallace & Gromit short, The Wrong Trousers.  In defiance, she sat down in the middle of the living room and breezed through the book in about 20 minutes.  Afterward, she set the book back on the floor and walked to her room, muttering, "They're not that evil..."

Obviously, I had to read it myself.  Ace and Bub are the Beaver Brothers.  They live on idyllic Beaver Island where, of course, they are preparing for a surfing competition.  It's a goofy children's story so we'll look past the fact that beavers (and walruses and polar bears, also featured in the book) are Northern Hemisphere animals whereas penguins only live in the Southern Hemisphere.  The "Evil Plan" involves using an old refrigerator, found abandoned in the ocean depths, to turn Beaver Island into a polar-themed resort.

The book is cute and fun but not especially substantive.  The artwork is simple and underwhelming.  Apart from the clever title and zany plot, I'm not sure it has much to recommend it.  Not exactly a book to avoid but probably not one to go out of your way for either.