Superhero

Every kid wants to be a SUPERHERO! Maleek may be a small boy in a big city, but he's no ordinary kid. He's a scientist and a superhero! So when his beloved city's parks and playgrounds mysteriously disappear, it's up to Maleek and his robot Marvyn to save the day. Marc Tauss's mesmerizing black-and-white photo-illustrations bring every young superhero's fantasy to life.

About the Author :
Marc Tauss is a photo-illustrator and a writer. He spent his childhood inventing gadgets and daydreaming - still two of his favorite activities. He has photo-illustrated Desiderata: Words for Life by Max Ehrmann, Leaf by Leaf by Barbara Rogasky, and Half-Human edited by Bruce Coville. And for more than twenty years, his distinctive photographs have graced countless book jackets, including the Scholastic Press books Learning to Swim and the forthcoming Hard Hit by Ann Turner, and Drawing Lessons and Birdland by Tracy Mack. Superhero, Marc Tauss's debut as both author and artist, brings every young superhero's fantasy to life through spare text and mesmerizing black-and-white photo-illustrations. Maleek may be a small boy in a big city, but he's no ordinary kid. He's a scientist and a superhero! So when his beloved city's parks and playgrounds mysteriously disappear, it's up to Maleek and his robot Marvyn to save the day. Marc Tauss lives in New York City.

Review :
Booklist 8/05 Tauss, Marc. Superhero. Sept. 2005. 40p. illus. Scholastic, $16.99 (0-439-62734-6). PreS-Gr. 2. In this picture book's opening photo, an African American boy, Maleek, gazes upon a comic book, face bathed in light from its glowing pages. The scene encapsulates the sense of wonder that superhero tales hold for children. But Maleek isn't just a consumer of secondhand adventure. He keeps "HIS superhero costume in a top secret hiding place," and he springs into action when the parks and playgrounds in his metropolis mysteriously disappear. The story is unexceptional, but the photographs used to illustrate it are a powerful draw. Tauss, whose work can also be found in Barbara Rogansky's Leaf by Leaf: Autumn Poems (2001), shoots in high-contrast black-and-white, with rich, silvery results reminiscent of the retro sf film Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. But even children who don't grasp the nostalgic references will enjoy the mix of realism and unabashed artifice in the photos, as well as the kid-driven heroics. Pull out Brian Pinkney's The Adventures of Sparrowboy (1997) or George O'Connor's Ka-Pow! (2003) and Ker-Splash! (2005) for more kids in capes. -Jennifer Mattson Kirkus 8/15 Maleek is deeply enamored of superhero comic books. Reading about their adventures fuels his active imagination and leads him to create his own. He has a secret identity complete with hidden costume; there's also a laboratory filled with his invented gadgets. Since every superhero is motivated by the desire to do good deeds, when all the city parks disappear, it's Maleek to the rescue. With his robot assistant, Marvyn, and a Time-O-Matic-Whenever-Wherever machine, he goes back in time to collect plants. Back home he uses these specimens to create a formula for Gigundo Juice, which he spreads around the city to recreate the parks and save the day. Tauss has created a feather-light tale that celebrates a child's creativity and offers a positive spin on the comi