What do you think?
Rate this book
Sidekicks #1
Sidekicks
Thirteen-year-old Guy Martin, also known as superhero Pumpkin Pete's sidekick Speedy, helps the League of Big Justice save the human race from being turned into puppets by Peenoh Keeoh and the Brotherhood of Rottenness.
97 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2003
5 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
About the author
Dan Danko
74 books1 followerDan Danko and Tom Mason are the brains behind MainBrain Productions, a multimedia development company located in Malibu, California. They have written series books for Scholastic, scripts for "Malcolm in the Middle" and several other network TV series, and various other kid-oriented media.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 14, 2011
Read this book when I was like, uh, 1. It's interesting if you really pay attention to the cover...xD
February 23, 2020
An Affectionate and Funny Send Up of Superhero Conventions
This is a very funny book that also has appealing characters, a plot, and an unfailingly cheerful and upbeat attitude. Our hero is the fastest boy alive and has been chosen to be a superhero sidekick. There are a couple of other sidekick books out there, but they play it straight. This one is played strictly for laughs. All of the superheroes have dopey powers. Their kid sidekicks have even dopier powers. The eeevil villains have the dopiest evil powers ever. But it's all presented with a deadpan seriousness, so the only ones in on the joke are our narrator and the book's young readers.
Consider some of the sidekicks: Spelling Beatrice, (she excels at spelling and throws Scrabble tiles), Charisma Kid, (a nice smile), Earlobe Lad, (good hearing), Spice Girl, (smells good), Exact Change Kid, (always has exact change), Boom Boy, (can blow himself up, but only once), Boy-in-the-Plastic-Bubble Boy, (in his Giant Hamster Ball of Justice). See where this headed?
Our sidekick/narrator actually is the fastest human alive, (92.7 miles per hour speed ability), so he has some credibility as an exasperated observer and chronicler of the madness around him. Apart from him and his best friend Miles, pretty much every other character in the book is insane or deluded or dysfunctional. But the good guys have good intentions and the sidekicks really, really want to do good, which is what gives the book some heart and an engaging knuckleheaded charm.
The best part is that there are different laughs for every type of reader and for every skill level. There is some fart/grossout humor for the Captain Underpants and Psycho Butt crowd. There is some funny observational humor. There is a lot of word play. There is a fair amount of plain silliness. There are all of the goofy names and powers.
But, there is also a lot of sly parody and some very subtle bits that kid the superhero conventions. There is also a good deal of very fast, sharp and clever dialogue, as well as some dry, wry and deadpan humor. Our narrator is pretty astute and some of his throwaway lines are inspired. As a consequence this book has appeal beyond early chapter book readers and has some real rewards for older readers who are likely to get the more sophisticated stuff.
The upshot is that this book, and the other books in the series, are funnier and more sophisticated than one might expect and are much more than just exercises in farts and silliness. That's a good thing to know.
Please note that I found this book while browsing the local library's Kindle books, and downloaded it for free. I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.
This is a very funny book that also has appealing characters, a plot, and an unfailingly cheerful and upbeat attitude. Our hero is the fastest boy alive and has been chosen to be a superhero sidekick. There are a couple of other sidekick books out there, but they play it straight. This one is played strictly for laughs. All of the superheroes have dopey powers. Their kid sidekicks have even dopier powers. The eeevil villains have the dopiest evil powers ever. But it's all presented with a deadpan seriousness, so the only ones in on the joke are our narrator and the book's young readers.
Consider some of the sidekicks: Spelling Beatrice, (she excels at spelling and throws Scrabble tiles), Charisma Kid, (a nice smile), Earlobe Lad, (good hearing), Spice Girl, (smells good), Exact Change Kid, (always has exact change), Boom Boy, (can blow himself up, but only once), Boy-in-the-Plastic-Bubble Boy, (in his Giant Hamster Ball of Justice). See where this headed?
Our sidekick/narrator actually is the fastest human alive, (92.7 miles per hour speed ability), so he has some credibility as an exasperated observer and chronicler of the madness around him. Apart from him and his best friend Miles, pretty much every other character in the book is insane or deluded or dysfunctional. But the good guys have good intentions and the sidekicks really, really want to do good, which is what gives the book some heart and an engaging knuckleheaded charm.
The best part is that there are different laughs for every type of reader and for every skill level. There is some fart/grossout humor for the Captain Underpants and Psycho Butt crowd. There is some funny observational humor. There is a lot of word play. There is a fair amount of plain silliness. There are all of the goofy names and powers.
But, there is also a lot of sly parody and some very subtle bits that kid the superhero conventions. There is also a good deal of very fast, sharp and clever dialogue, as well as some dry, wry and deadpan humor. Our narrator is pretty astute and some of his throwaway lines are inspired. As a consequence this book has appeal beyond early chapter book readers and has some real rewards for older readers who are likely to get the more sophisticated stuff.
The upshot is that this book, and the other books in the series, are funnier and more sophisticated than one might expect and are much more than just exercises in farts and silliness. That's a good thing to know.
Please note that I found this book while browsing the local library's Kindle books, and downloaded it for free. I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.
June 22, 2020
This book is told told in the point of view of Guy Martin, a 13 year old who is also known as Pumpkin Pete's sidekick, Speedy. He can run exactly 92.7 miles an hour, and he has a crush on Prudence Cane.
This story is interesting because it shows the perspective of the sidekick instead of the superhero, which I liked.
Overall I enjoyed this story and I have already gotten book 4 (because my library doesn't have 2 or 3)
This story is interesting because it shows the perspective of the sidekick instead of the superhero, which I liked.
Overall I enjoyed this story and I have already gotten book 4 (because my library doesn't have 2 or 3)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 11, 2014
TCL CALL #: J SHORT CHAPTER DANKO D
Chris’s Rating: 3 Stars
Guy Martin aims at being a real super hero. As the fastest person in the world (with a top speed at 92.7 miles per hour) he has potential; but first he must deal with having a crush on a girl who doesn’t know he exists, while being sidekick to the mighty Pumpkin Pete, the superhero with all the powers of a pumpkin! When the League of Big Justice is attacked and most of the superheroes go missing (many of the sidekicks are also taken shortly after), Guy (aka Speedy) must track them down and save the day.
This book is one to be read for laughs more than for the actual story. The plot has been rehashed time and time again, but the spoofy nature of the writing is quite farfetched and fun. It is a short book, so can be read very quickly and is likely to appeal to Reluctant Readers. Half the Superheroes, Supervillains, and sidekicks have utterly useless abilities (adding to the humor), and the conclusion, while funny in its own way, is not very conclusive. Best for young readers ages 8-11 who like zany superhero action that is more silly than serious.
Chris’s Rating: 3 Stars
Guy Martin aims at being a real super hero. As the fastest person in the world (with a top speed at 92.7 miles per hour) he has potential; but first he must deal with having a crush on a girl who doesn’t know he exists, while being sidekick to the mighty Pumpkin Pete, the superhero with all the powers of a pumpkin! When the League of Big Justice is attacked and most of the superheroes go missing (many of the sidekicks are also taken shortly after), Guy (aka Speedy) must track them down and save the day.
This book is one to be read for laughs more than for the actual story. The plot has been rehashed time and time again, but the spoofy nature of the writing is quite farfetched and fun. It is a short book, so can be read very quickly and is likely to appeal to Reluctant Readers. Half the Superheroes, Supervillains, and sidekicks have utterly useless abilities (adding to the humor), and the conclusion, while funny in its own way, is not very conclusive. Best for young readers ages 8-11 who like zany superhero action that is more silly than serious.
March 10, 2015
A funny tale about the kid sidekicks to a league of superheroes. The main character is Speedy who is stuck to Pumpkin Pete but dreams of being Captain Justice’s sidekick. All of the superheroes have strange powers, but the sidekicks have even stranger powers---almost all of their powers are completely useless. The villans have the strongest powers, and, of course, one of the most outlandish evil plots ever.
Funny and engaging, and written in an upbeat way. The great thing about Danko is that he writes all of this silliness in a serious, deadpan tone that makes it that much funnier. Speedy is also the narrator, and he does a fine job telling of all the insanity around him; basically everybody in the book is either delusional or insane to a degree beyond his comprehension. At the same time they have to put up with stuff like homework, curfews, and crushes.
Silly, funny and even somewhat sophisticated. Somewhat.
Funny and engaging, and written in an upbeat way. The great thing about Danko is that he writes all of this silliness in a serious, deadpan tone that makes it that much funnier. Speedy is also the narrator, and he does a fine job telling of all the insanity around him; basically everybody in the book is either delusional or insane to a degree beyond his comprehension. At the same time they have to put up with stuff like homework, curfews, and crushes.
Silly, funny and even somewhat sophisticated. Somewhat.
Read
February 4, 2016Guy Martin, aka Speedy, and his friends Spelling Beatrice, Charisma Kid, Earlobe lad, Spice girl and Boom Boy, among others, are all sidekicks to superheroes of the League of Big Justice: King Justice, Lady Bug, Captain Haggis, The Stain, The good Egg, Hs Mime, Depression Dave and The Librarian. The sidekicks and superheroes engage in a battle against Peenoh Keeoh and the Brotherhood of Rottenness to keep Peenoh from destroying the League of Big Justice and turning everyone on earth into living puppets (hint hint re: the villain).
December 11, 2007
This spoof on all things super hero would appeal to a slightly older reader because of the satirical humor--a great choice as a high interest/low level book.
Short and sweet-- Speedy is a sidekick who hopes to earn his hero status one day, but his mentor is the un-exciting Pumpkin Pete.
When a couple of nasty villains try to destroy the world, Speedy gets his opportunity to take them down and get rewarded... or will somebody else get all the credit, as usual?
Short and sweet-- Speedy is a sidekick who hopes to earn his hero status one day, but his mentor is the un-exciting Pumpkin Pete.
When a couple of nasty villains try to destroy the world, Speedy gets his opportunity to take them down and get rewarded... or will somebody else get all the credit, as usual?
July 19, 2007
This book made me laugh until I cried.
December 15, 2008
Silly but lots of fun
September 3, 2013
This one is packed with corny puns and I think it would make a good read-aloud option. It's short with short chapters and a few laugh out loud moments.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews