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book_lizard42's review
3.0
I won this book on Goodreads, and it was cute, but very complicated. The illustrations of Leo are fun, but it's more of a novelty book than a "sit-down-and-read-to-the-kid" kind of book.
lannthacker's review
3.0
For older kids, this is a fun exploration of the graphic novel format, changing orientation a few times. There are no panels, but the level of detail in the artwork really moves this simple story along. Simple science is interspersed with monsters and magic and even some gross-out humor.
phillybear's review
5.0
One of the coolest books I've read lately! Jon is a genius. The layout of the book is not only extremely interesting, but it actually adds to the story of the book as you crawl through one side of the earth to the next. As a librarian I had trouble cataloging this book for my library collection. I kept being tempted to put it in with non fiction since it had so many great facts interspersed with the fun story. What a joy!
saidtheraina's review
3.0
Weird, very strange book.
At first this seemed like a no brainer to booktalk to upper elementary for summer reading this year (2013's theme is "Dig into Reading"). But after a reading a pile more books for this age group, I wasn't inspired with something to say about it that would hook a classroom of kids.
It's an odd book. Super long and skinny, it illustrates a humanoid figure crawling through the imagined center of the earth, encountering contraptions and creatures along the way. There isn't really a plot (beyond what I just described), and there isn't really any character development either. There are speech bubbles, but they mostly consist of the character narrating the journey. The drawings are cool, don't get me wrong, and the right kid will totally get into looking at all the detailed world building. But it's black and white only, and reads pretty much like an extended doodle. The doodle you would eagerly peek over your best friend's shoulder to see, sure, but a doodle nonetheless.
Cool, but niche-y.
At first this seemed like a no brainer to booktalk to upper elementary for summer reading this year (2013's theme is "Dig into Reading"). But after a reading a pile more books for this age group, I wasn't inspired with something to say about it that would hook a classroom of kids.
It's an odd book. Super long and skinny, it illustrates a humanoid figure crawling through the imagined center of the earth, encountering contraptions and creatures along the way. There isn't really a plot (beyond what I just described), and there isn't really any character development either. There are speech bubbles, but they mostly consist of the character narrating the journey. The drawings are cool, don't get me wrong, and the right kid will totally get into looking at all the detailed world building. But it's black and white only, and reads pretty much like an extended doodle. The doodle you would eagerly peek over your best friend's shoulder to see, sure, but a doodle nonetheless.
Cool, but niche-y.
amyjoy's review
3.0
This is a super quick read, and it's cute for kids 7-11 (or so). The format is really unique (long & narrow, read from top to bottom), and I think kids would really like it, but I mostly thought it was awkward. There's a lot of great information here, and I would definitely use this in a 4th or 5th grade unit on the layers of the earth, and it could be a good exercise in fact vs fiction. However, as an adult reading this, there is no real plot or sense of urgency or desperation; it kind of reminded me of the "plot" of Where's Waldo's adventures. I'm not sure this is something that would bother the target audience, though.
geese82's review
4.0
A quick read, an adventure to the center of the earth, eventhough it is not really Geology 101… great sequential art and hard to put down.
akmargie's review
4.0
Love Leo Geo! A fun blend of facts and fantasy of journeying to the center of the Earth. Also love the design of the book, very clever concept that was very well done, art and text. Great read for boys that are into science and science-fiction.