Super-Awesome Comic!

Pizza and Taco #3

by Stephen Shaskan

Besties Pizza and Taco are BACK in Book 3, putting their drawing skills--and wild imaginations--to good use writing a comic book together!

When you love comics like Pizza and Taco do, the next step after reading them is to collaborate on one!! But what happens when they run up against "artistic differences?" Who gets to have the bigger muscles and the more rad superpowers? Can these two strong-willed foodstuffs compromise and make a comic that is more awesome than the sum of its parts?

This hilarious young graphic novel--with chapters--will tickle the funny bones of kids ages 5-8 and bolster their reading confidence. Young graphic chapter books are a great step on the way to graphic novels and longer chapter books.

Readers will devour all the books in the
Pizza and Who's the Best?
Pizza and Best Party Ever!
Pizza and Super-Awesome Comic!
Pizza and Too Cool For School
Pizza and Rock Out!

Genres: Graphic Novels, Humor, Childrens, Fiction, Fantasy, Food, Graphic Novels Comics

72 pages, Hardcover

Published August 10, 2021

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence:
Pizza: Hey, Taco! Taco! Taco! Taco! Taco! Hey, Taco!!! TACO!!!
Taco: Oh, hey, Pizza.
Pizza: Whatcha doing?
Taco: I made a comic!

Premise/plot: In their THIRD adventure, these two best friends decide to work TOGETHER to write a comic book (or possibly a graphic novel). They start by brainstorming. What should their comic be about??? So many choices! So tough to decide! What about superhero wizards who do martial arts in outerspace???

But will working together to create a comic book damage their friendship? What if these two were to have....ARTISTIC differences???? CAN this comic be saved? Can this friendship be repaired?

My thoughts: I really LOVED this one. I thought it would be hard--if not impossible--for this one to be better than the second adventure, Best Party Ever. It may be too close to call. It was relatable. It was silly. It was able to throw in some real world advice for how to work together: Listen, Be Positive, and Compromise. Overall, I loved it.

Definitely recommend this series. It kept growing on me. I want more, more, more!

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pizza and Taco decide to collaborate on a super-awesome comic, but quickly learn they're going to need a set of rules to work together without fighting. Hopefully this book will encourage the kiddos to create their own comics. This seems like a delightful series filled with zany antics that I NEED to start buying for our library.

Look for this one in August.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a taste of this super-awesome series.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good for 4-5 yr olds.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another cute and funny installment in the Pizza & Taco series, This time, Pizza & Taco decide to write their own comic together. A funny adventure unfolds as the two also provide young writers with great tips on how to create their own masterpieces!

[Roben · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so cute! I found myself smiling all the way through. For example - Pizza's weakness? Pineapple, of course.
This would be a good book to share with kids before they work on a project together. Just be prepared for Super Farts!

[Marinda (rindasreads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Judging purely by the cover, I thought this would be a perfect two-person read aloud with my second grade son. However, something was weird with the formatting of our kindle version and we were both so frustrated by ten pages in that we gave up. I couldn't understand if the text was meant to be in the comic or on the bottom of the page. It became clear, as well, that the story wasn't anything special beyond a tagline intended to interest young readers of graphic novels.

I was able to download the book on the netgalley app without a problem, and I read it for myself as my phone is too small for both my son and I to read. While the book did seem age-appropriate for my son (6-7 years old), I wasn't overly impressed with the story. My son loves graphic novels, and I fully support that, but this story had a little too much bathroom humor and not enough text to stretch him, so it isn't one I would recommend to other parents for their children.

[Genres and Journals *Tia* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still love Pizza and Taco but this was my least favorite of the series so far. It just wasn’t as funny and engaging as the previous ones were.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book, pizza 🍕 and taco 🌮 didn't agree, but they wanted to change that, so they did.

Eli

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s been at least one time in your life that you’d like to be someone different whether that person is real or fictional. Pizza and Taco have decided to act on this and create a graphic novel together. They believe that they would make great fictional superheroes, so the besties start planning out how to accomplish this goal together.

It truly is a fun, creative plan. Pizza is good at writing so he’ll be writing the story and with Taco’s great handwriting and artistic ability, Taco will oversee the graphics. It’s funny as they work all day separately writing/sketching and when they come together to discuss their ideas, the reactions they get from one another. Will Taco Awesome and Super Slice ever make it past the preview stage? Could they have done this a different way to be successful? Through it all, they did come up with some Rules for Working Together: 1. Listen 2. Be Positive 3. Compromise

My grandchildren enjoy this book as they like how Pizza and Taco create their superhero and how they argue back and forth but they’re still friends. They’re able to express themselves, be heard, and still have a friend at the end of the book. I love the illustrations and how everything is not rosy. There is conflict and differences which they work out without a bunch of drama. 5 stars

[Brooke - TheBrookeList · Rating 3 out of 5]

This third installment of Pizza and Taco by Stephen Shaskan, Pizza and Taco: Super-Awesome Comic!, has been long-awaited by my six-year-old. We enjoyed seeing Pizza and Taco work together this time, showing that teamwork is not always simple and requires some give and take from everyone on the team. They work together to create a great comic - complete with silly villains (we knew hamburger and hotdog would get into things again) and a little potty humor. Clever to fit a comic book into a comic book.

The team in this series is funny and easy to follow, with simple dialog and graphics that keep newer readers cruising. While the literary value and plotlines aren't riveting, it fits the bill for something quick, easy, and silly to get kids reading. The plot of this third book in the series was not our favorite (the second book had such a funny twist of trouble), but it was still worth diving in.

[Theediscerning · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a drop in form for this series at the second attempt, with the creators forgetting to include any kind of moral or purpose for the story, here our friendly fast foods are trying to get into the world of producing comics. But once they write themselves into it as superheroes there are soon problems, with unequal super-abilities and no parity in their characters' status or importance to proceedings. Can they possibly learn to compromise and get the best out of each other? Of course they can, in this affirmative, quick little lesson – a book that is much closer to the first in the series, and closer to what these titles should be doing. They're still not great, but they're good snapshots at how friendships have their highs and lows. Three and a half stars.

[Ellon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars (I liked it)

Read directly after Cat Kid Comic Club: Collaborations, which is also about characters working together to make comics but is by the amazing Pilkey so I feel kind of bad for this book. That being said, I still enjoyed it. It shows friends having a disagreement and working through it. It has great ideas for how to work together with a friend (three rules: Listen, Be positive, Compromise). I wasn't a big fan of the villain being called DORK Cheeseburger. I do think students will enjoy the book though.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I initially sent this advance copy to my kindle and that version had some weird formatting where the words were underneath the comic and all jumbled together. I was so sad because this seemed like a fun read! I went back to netgalley and downloaded the book to my app so I could actually read it and review, and thankfully it came out correctly!
This is a fun, short comic that teaches you the power and fun of working together! Pizza and taco are wacky characters who are always excited, it was so entertaining to see what they were getting up to.
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy for my unbiased opinion.

[call me by my name · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Pizza and Taco: Super-Awesome Comic!' by Stephen Shaskan is a kids graphic novel which revolves around two best friends Pizza and Taco. It's the 3rd installment in the series.

As pizza and taco love comics a lot, so they decide to write one. During the process, they come across some 'artistic differences'. The book teaches kids about things like compromise, team work, etc.

I liked how the book is easy to read, with lots of colorful illustrations that keep reluctant readers going. There are these wacky yet relatable characters. Looking forward for next installment.

*Thank you Netgalley for this ARC*

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Pizza and Taco: Super-Awesome Comic!' by Stephen Shaskan is a graphic novel for young readers about two great friends.

Pizza and Taco love to have adventures together. This time around, they decide to create a comic book starring hero versions of themselves. After a series of false starts, can they come to an agreement and make a great comic?

This is a fun series and shows young readers some tips on making their own books, and also how to get along with their friends.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Random House Children's and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

[Librarylady · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad I was able to review an eARC of this book from NetGalley because I had not seen this series before. This is the third installment in the series about Pizza and Taco, two best friends. In this book, they decide to write a graphic novel together. Super Slice and Taco Awesome may be superheroes, but Pizza and Taco have some artistic differences when working together. The adorable pictures, great humor. and relatable storyline make it a perfect fit for kids K-3. I plan on purchasing the whole series for my school library.

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The teacher part of me loves this book, and the kid part of me LOOOOOOOOVES this book! Our young readers and writers deserve to laugh, read what they like, and have positive experiences with reading and writing. Pizza and Taco have a sweet friendship. I love how they encourage each other through challenging times.

Stephen Shaskan's series had made a reader out of a young student I work with who now declares reading fun. It's honestly something that brings tears to my eyes! Now he wants Stephen Shaskan to make a Pizza and Taco book about football. Thank you, Stephen Shaskan!

[Kelli Reagle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't realize this was a series and I will be going back to read the others!

The book was easy to read, they illustrations were nicely done. My son is a reluctant reader and enjoyed this one. It reminds me of the captain underpants series.

The book teaches about team work and compromising while they are writing their comic,

Pizza and Taco were cute, wacky characters. I enjoyed their adventure.

[Lo Wayward Tomes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had to read through the app because the kindle format was messed up but it aside from that little hick up this was cute. I had my kids read this to because they love the series too and this is hands down are favorite one yet, They love the friendship between Pizza and Taco and how they always come to compromise so they both get what they want and have a good time.

[Karly Grice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m obsessed with this early reader comic series. Hilarious for kids and adults, and smart re: literacy/critical thinking skills but in a “hide the vegetables” way that doesn’t feel overly didactic. Excellent for elementary or middle (or even a fun/humorous/hi-lo option for high school) looking for multimodal composition and comprehension lessons. Don’t sleep on this series if you’re a teacher, parent, or librarian.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun junior graphic novel. A lovely, quirky title to get younger patrons interested in comics and maybe even interested in reading if they aren't big fans of it yet.

The character combo is fun and something almost any kid would reach for, fun colors, easy to read.

A real winner, but not the great piece of children's literature you'll ever read.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pizza and Taco: Super-Awesome Comic is a cute comic about Pizza and Taco who have different artistic ideas of what makes a superhero. The story evolves as they articulate their opinions and try to work together to create a super awesome comic of their own.

Special thanks to Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although this book helps young readers learn a bit about the writing process and cooperating with others, I just can't get over the use of bathroom humor as the tool used to defeat a villain in the comic book that was created. There are many other comic books out there that help children learn to read comics without resorting to bathroom humor.

[Laura Vogt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Playful, buddy graphic novel for fans of NARWHAL & JELLY. Fun, colorful illustrations. I read with my six-year-old daughter.

I appreciated how the characters learned about compromise and teamwork, but the humor fell flat for us.

[Taryn McCollum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this because my 2 preteen boys told me I should. I liked this so much more than I expected to.
It was funny and had a great message about friendship and learning to work together and work through conflicts.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pizza and Taco are best friends and decide to create their own comic. They each have different ideas and can't figure out how to combine them. They try to make separate comics, but it does not work. Super Fart power for the win! Very funny.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best friends to the end, Pizza and Taco combine their talents together and write and design the most awesome comic ever. Their creation is not without its hiccups and conflicts, but Pizza and Taco writes three rules to help them work together. 1. Listen, 2. Be Positive, and 3. Compromise.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son (6 years) has really been into Graphic Novels, so I snatched these up from the library after seeing their adorable covers. We read this one together. I voiced Pizza and he was the voice of Taco. I'm indifferent about these books, but he seems to be enjoying it, so I'll give it 4 Stars.

[LibraryKath · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is silly and fun and cute. I love the way that there are photographic elements tied in to pizza and taco. It's a simple story but it's fun and engaging, and Pizza and Taco are great characters. Perfect for a young reader starting to read on their own.

[AllyP Reads Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best friends Pizza and Taco start to create a comic but are torn apart by creative differences. They work together to solve the problem and create a fun comic. Kids can really learn from Pizza and Taco about collaboration and the give-and-take that comes with working with others.