I was given an online PDF version of the book, Maury the Miserable Vampire (again, a big thank you for thinking of me Ms. Was). I was not sure what was going to happen. I searched for a description and the story seemed simple enough, but was it going to be good enough? The art was not my usual “like” when it comes to illustrations. But (come to find out like Maury) I needed to take a chance.
In the end, it was not only good enough it was very sweet. The art is fun to look at. There are hidden items (a spider on a few pages, the maps of Maury’s adventures have some great humor and the end has a situation that will fall into the “potty humor” category) to see. The story itself is a bit obvious (do things even if you are scared and be a friend, get a friend) but it is nicely done. The biggest issue I had with the story is that the flow sometimes was slightly choppy. But I think kids would really get a kick out of the crazy stuff Maury finds themselves in. A smaller issue (and this is a personal pet peeve) all the witches have W names (ie: W is for Witch and a bunch of W names) and it is Barry Bat. Yet, Gary the Mummy and Harry the Werewolf (though hairy/Harry was not lost on me) do break that pattern.
Jeff Roland likes Maury (maybe even is Maury, even if only a small amount and I say this with a lot of love). And we all know a Maury (be it adult or child). And Adamah Van Arsdale had fun making the illustrations. They are bright, and minimal (but appropriate) details. And while I am not “jumping up and down” and praising the wonders of this book, I enjoyed the experience of reading it, and say it could work one-on-one reading or would make a good addition to a therapist for children’s collection.
(Note from MsWas: CBR was offered a free copy of this book for a fair review. You can purchase your own copy of Maury the Miserable Vampire at his website.)
