The Monster Squad

Junior Monster Scouts #1

by Joe McGee, Ethan Long (Illustrations)

Get to know the Junior Monster Scouts in this first book in a brand-new chapter book series that’s perfect for fans of Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol and Hotel Transylvania!

Wolfy, Franky, and Vampyra—the children of the classic monsters—are Junior Monster Scouts. And even though ‘monster’ is their middle name, these funny fiends just want to help anybody in need, earn their Junior Monster Scout merit badges, and make friends. But, their good deeds are always foiled by Baron Von Grump, a cranky schemer who doesn’t like noise, doesn’t like kids, and most of all doesn’t like the Junior Monster Scouts.

Peter Piper’s kitten Shadow is lost deep in The Gloomy Forest, and the Scouts want to help their new friend. But today is also the Village Cheese Festival and all of the celebrating has Baron Von Grump at wits’ end. How can he play his violin in peace if the villagers are making such a racket? He hatches a cheesy plan that involves huge and hungry rats! Uh-oh! Can the Scouts save the cats, the rats, and the day?

Genres: Fantasy, Monsters, Childrens, Humor, Fiction, Friendship, Halloween

112 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2019

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

The children of Frankenstein, Dracula and Wolfman all belong to Junior Monster Scouts! Very original fun that teaches young children to work together and not judge others just because they are different.

[Jessica Rinker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky to read an ARC because I'm married to the author. So I might be biased but these books are SO CUTE! Fun reads that kids are totally going to love.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolfy, Franky, and Vampyra make up the Junior Monster Scouts. Despite being the offspring of famous monsters (Wolf Man, Frankenstein, and Dracula), they are remarkably nice and helpful. They work hard to earn their Junior Scout merit badges. In this first book, the trio sets out to help Peter Piper, a local villager, whose kitten has wandered into the Gloomy Forest and gotten lost. Facing their fears, the four set out to find the poor kitten. Meanwhile, Baron Von Grump is furious with the local village who is making way too much noise during the Village Cheese Festival. He sends a group of rats to the village to eat the cheese and chase away the villagers. Can the Junior Monster Scouts help Peter save his kitten and return in time to help the villagers too? The story is straight-forward in its themes without being too preachy and works well for the intended audience. Young readers who want monster stories that aren't too scary are likely to enjoy this series. Especially since all three main characters do have powers that they use to help save the day.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frankie, Vampyra, and Wolfie are Junior Monster Scouts. There is trouble in town with an infestation of rats ruining their cheese festival. The townies are moving out and Peter, a young from town, is afraid of the Junior Monster Scouts but they show him otherwise by saving him. He then saves the town. And Dracula gets a bunch of rats in his basement.

I loved this book. It's a great set-up for the series. The kids are great. I love that they have a pledge to help others. And how cool is it to have Frankenstein as your scout master. I cannot wait to read more of these guys.

[Nicole Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute early chapter book! I loved the fun twist on the traditional monster characters & seeing them work on their merit badges! There was humor but also a sweet story about working together and helping others. This would be a great early chapter book series for readers just starting to read chapter books (probably 1st-3rd grade). I really enjoyed this one & am looking forward to the next book in the series to see what our characters will do next to thwart Baron Von Grump!

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vampyra, Wolfie, and Frankie, the children of Dracula, Wolf Man, and Frankenstein, are Junior Monster Scouts and want to earn merit badges and help others. Baron Von Grump hates everything except his violin, his pet crow Edgar, and making plans. The monster children find a crying human boy, Peter the piper, and help him find his missing cat. Meanwhile, the baron is so perturbed by the smiling, noisy, cheese-eating villagers, he makes a plan to get rid of them by sending the rats from his basement to town. By working together, the children help Peter, the villagers, and the rats, earning merit badges in the process. Thwarted Baron Von Grump now has another reason to hate the monsters and promises retaliation.
The first book in a new series (the second is also out and the third available soon), this story is aimed at younger readers jumping from early readers to chapter books. The combination of silliness and scariness and the juxtaposition of monster details with realistic problem-solving and working together will delight the intended audience. The author directly addresses the reader from time to time, which adds to its charm, but the blah illustrations do not. As a class read-aloud, it’d lend itself nicely to discussions about propaganda. It’s never too early to start talking about fake news.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute new series of books about the children of famous monsters. Despite the fact that they are monsters, they are in Junior Monster Scouts to learn how to be good, kind, helpful monsters. In this book (the first in the series) Peter Piper has lost his cat so the Junior Monster Scouts decide to help. Meanwhile, the grumpy Baron Von Grump is trying to clear out the town of all the noisy, happy people. There is a lot going on in this book - the main characters deal with a small mystery and work to dispel prejudice, the town festival is being ruined by the crappy Baron and rats, the chapters go back and forth between perspectives. For the most part, this is all tied together well and it's impressive what the author manages to cover in such a brief book with easy language for new readers. What I love most however is the way the narrator interacts with the reader. It is written in a way I haven't experienced in a chapter book before and it's a super fun way to engage new readers. This is a not-scary chapter book that is still perfect for Halloween time because so many popular Halloween elements appear like Dracula, bats, and spooky woods appear on the pages.

[Annamarie Carlson (she, her)]

Franky, Vampyra, and Wolfy love being Junior Monster Scouts, looking to help anyone in need while earning Junior Monster Scout badges. When wandering the woods, they discover a young boy, Peter, who is sad because he lost his kitten Shadow. Soon the Scouts are on the case to find the missing cat, but meanwhile, back in the village, the evil Baron Von Grump has started his plan to overrun the village with rats to scare the villagers away.

A cute, quick read. A fun series for Halloween or anyone looking for something a little spooky or mysterious, but where you know good will persevere in the end.

[Sara White]

A cute easy chapter book that had a twist on the traditional monster characters. In this book, Franky, Wolfy, and Vampyra are the children of the classic monsters and junior scouts trying to earn merit badges. This is a sweet story about working together and learning to help others. There are several illustrations throughout the book that help add humor to the story—a great book for beginner readers.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wolfy, Franky, and Vampyra are Monster Scouts who endeavor to be friendly and helpful, not scary.
In this adventure they earn their teamwork merit badge but working together to find Peter Piper’s cat.

They also help save the village from rats, who are sent by potential nemesis Baron Von Grump.

Cute and funny, lots of breaking the fourth wall, which I enjoyed. Recommend.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute, funny series opener. Great chapter book for 2nd-3rd grade.

[Jessie Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this with my son.
It was okay.

[Simplekind · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book. Lt liked it.

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid 3 - cute read aloud.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Ani M · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a good reminder to be kind to others and help others in need.

[Ashley Leathers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this to my class. They loved it

[Jen Traub · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute and sweet.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super great story with some fantastic life lessons.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this for my daughter for our daily read aloud. She just wasn’t into it.

[Angela Christensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a cute litte book. I loved reading this with my child.

[Syntha Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and slightly interactive

[Kayla Ellingson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a cute story- kids listened but didn't rate it 5 ⭐️

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an electronic ARC from Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing.
Children of classic monsters have their own tales to tell. This Monster Scouts group - Wolfy, Franky & Vampira - want to earn merit badges and help others. They're often thwarted by their nemesis, Baron Von Grump (no subtlety to these names). In this book, they attempt to rescue Peter Piper's lost cat.
The concept is interesting but a little overdone. It will probably appeal to younger readers on the characters alone. I thought the writing was choppy and pieces of the plot were cobbled together. Again, younger readers will enjoy the humor of the situations and enjoy the fun.

[Jennifer King · Rating 5 out of 5]

We finally found a chapter book series that both kids love to read!! They are 8&6. My son is in Cub Scouts and this book grabbed his attention. It follows the same principles of his pack. It’s easy to read and funny! Each book has a great message to teach to your young reader too. The narrator even stops and asks the reader a rhetorical question or one book recommended a dance break. Super clever to get your reader engaged! If you have a reluctant reader at home, I highly recommend giving this series a chance.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was okay. Monsters as Boy scouts that help a kid find his cat and then they all help a village thats overrun with rats. For me, I did not like that the chapters went back and forth between the Grump and the kids because we were reading two chapters a night and we always ended with a Grump chapter.

I did not want to continue the series, but I am not the boss on this one.