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Arcade World #1
Dino Trouble
Two best friends in a town taken over by video games have to outsmart digital dinosaurs in the first book in the Arcade World graphic novel chapter book series.
Life in Normal used to be, well, pretty normal. Kids went to school. Kids did their homework and chores after school. And then kids met up at the local arcade, called Arcade World. Arcade World was the weirdest, coolest place. It had a collection of video games that no one had ever heard of, like Dino Trouble or Hot Dog Time.
And no one held more high scores than Travis Better and Journey West. But one day, the video games in Arcade World came alive.
Now, there’s a whole new normal in town—as Normal becomes a dangerous Arcade World.
Join Travis and Journey as they race dinosaurs to school, survive bottomless pit falls, and battle aliens to level up and solve mysteries like what’s going on, who really owns Arcade World, and whether this video game takeover is a glitch or part of a larger, evil plan.
Life in Normal used to be, well, pretty normal. Kids went to school. Kids did their homework and chores after school. And then kids met up at the local arcade, called Arcade World. Arcade World was the weirdest, coolest place. It had a collection of video games that no one had ever heard of, like Dino Trouble or Hot Dog Time.
And no one held more high scores than Travis Better and Journey West. But one day, the video games in Arcade World came alive.
Now, there’s a whole new normal in town—as Normal becomes a dangerous Arcade World.
Join Travis and Journey as they race dinosaurs to school, survive bottomless pit falls, and battle aliens to level up and solve mysteries like what’s going on, who really owns Arcade World, and whether this video game takeover is a glitch or part of a larger, evil plan.
144 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 15, 2022
10 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
February 22, 2022
First sentence: Okay, welcome to Normal. I should probably explain a few things first. That's me, Travis Better. And that's my best friend Journey West.
Premise/plot: Dino Trouble is the first in a new graphic novel series for young readers. Travis Better (the narrator) and Journey West (the best friend sidekick) find themselves IN the video game. Arcade World is the name of the town's arcade. It is relatively new to town, but has quickly become the IT place to be for all the kids. [I believe each book will focus on one arcade game coming to life.] There are some indications that there is a bad guy with a master plan... but this book doesn't really answer questions about the bigger picture.
My thoughts: Travis and Journey battle video-game villains (and face video-game challenges) in the real world. Usually before or after school. They recognize the levels from the game they are both addicted to. There aren't any actual (satisfying) explanations as to why or how. (Except that the owner of the arcade is more likely than not Evil and has a Master Plan.) The book highlights the game-playing aspects of the game.
Dino Trouble--this fictional game--is ridiculous almost to the point of obnoxiousness. Though perhaps that is a form of parody??? I don't know. It involves dinosaurs, glitter (which is obnoxiously called shine-shine), ice cream, etc. This one goes full out for embracing the whimsy.
ANY book that gets a kid to read has some merit. Perhaps not every book is going to be perceived as "high quality" by adults, but few books (if any) merit being labeled NO quality. Any book could have the potential to be the one book that turns a kid onto reading and leads to other books...and years (if not a lifetime) of reading.
Premise/plot: Dino Trouble is the first in a new graphic novel series for young readers. Travis Better (the narrator) and Journey West (the best friend sidekick) find themselves IN the video game. Arcade World is the name of the town's arcade. It is relatively new to town, but has quickly become the IT place to be for all the kids. [I believe each book will focus on one arcade game coming to life.] There are some indications that there is a bad guy with a master plan... but this book doesn't really answer questions about the bigger picture.
My thoughts: Travis and Journey battle video-game villains (and face video-game challenges) in the real world. Usually before or after school. They recognize the levels from the game they are both addicted to. There aren't any actual (satisfying) explanations as to why or how. (Except that the owner of the arcade is more likely than not Evil and has a Master Plan.) The book highlights the game-playing aspects of the game.
Dino Trouble--this fictional game--is ridiculous almost to the point of obnoxiousness. Though perhaps that is a form of parody??? I don't know. It involves dinosaurs, glitter (which is obnoxiously called shine-shine), ice cream, etc. This one goes full out for embracing the whimsy.
ANY book that gets a kid to read has some merit. Perhaps not every book is going to be perceived as "high quality" by adults, but few books (if any) merit being labeled NO quality. Any book could have the potential to be the one book that turns a kid onto reading and leads to other books...and years (if not a lifetime) of reading.
May 23, 2022
Was this the greatest graphic novel ever? Not necessarily. Will kids love it? Oh yes! Basically Travis and Journey are total video game heads who beat everything they play. When they become targets of the sinister Mini Boss at a new arcade that popped up in town, they realized a game they love, Dino Trouble, is bleeding into their daily lives. The rules and world building didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me, but that’s ok. I also wished Journey and Travis were more developed as characters. These quibbles aside, this is a fast paced, video game focused book that will appeal to kids for sure! Maybe 1-3rd grade appeal?
June 2, 2023
Super fun graphic for younger kids but maybe too young to fully get all the gaming references. Two best friends have to defeat video game bosses or get destroyed and the banter is fun, but the pacing is way too fast to get to know or care about anyone. I'd read more, but I'm not holding my breath for it.
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April 16, 2025My son absolutely loved reading this together
November 28, 2021
So much fun! If you have a young reader in your life who enjoys gaming and adventures, I highly recommend this new series.
Wonderful illustrations, fun story, a girl best friend who's the #1 gamer, and a dark mystery at the end that leaves you hooked and desperate for the next book.
Wonderful illustrations, fun story, a girl best friend who's the #1 gamer, and a dark mystery at the end that leaves you hooked and desperate for the next book.
March 7, 2022
"Yea, I'd read the next one." 9 & 7 year old review.
December 24, 2023
Travis "Danger" Better and his best friend Journey Alyssa West love playing video and computer games. The empty building in their neighborhood known as the Creep Zone is strangely transformed into Arcade World. It's full of video games that are free for kids to play, and Travis and Journey are number 1 and 2 on almost all of the leader boards, except Dino Trouble. When the mysterious, Wonka-like Mr. E. Miniboss encourages him to try to get on the leaderboard, Travis finally gets to number 2. As they walk to school the next day, they are transported into the game with flying dinosaurs and dangerous missions to complete. Something sinister is going on. The plot could be fleshed out more, but maybe that happens in future books. This first volume ends pretty abruptly, but readers will want to find out what's going on with this arcade. It's a fast-paced video game story for fans of Super Rabbit Boy.
November 22, 2021
Very colourful and exuberant look at the made-in-the-classroom plot of the children of the town being gifted a free, ever-open games arcade, where the best players find themselves playing the game in real life. There's a lot of the book here before that actually happens, but it's not just setting this story up – there are at least four of these books to come, with a different game featuring in each one. The one here is really cheesy and childish – something about dinosaurs killing you with ice-cream – but the liveliness of it all will carry it through for the target audience. A promising start to the franchise.
November 3, 2022
I guess I can see this working for a target audience of 1st & 2nd, *maybe* 3rd graders...but I feel like any kid who is a serious gamer is gonna feel like this is talking down to them. Overall, it felt really shallow and rushed. Minimal character development, dialed-in gaming tropes, cliched dialogue. The art is fine, but not distinctive. An Easter egg portal in some random *tree*? You gotta jump through numerous hoops to get to that kinda stuff usually. I hate straight-up dissing someone else's art, but this was really frustrating to read because it could have been so much better.
August 15, 2025
This is a cute, colorful graphic novel for younger readers. If you like Wreck it Ralph, you’ll be a fan of this quick read. In this book two friends play video games that seem to come to life in the real world, and they must work together to survive dino attacks. This sets the scene for future hijinks at the seemingly sinister arcade. My 7yo blazed through the whole series that we borrowed from the library.
February 18, 2023
2 stars (it was okay)
I could see some kids enjoying this book but it was just okay for me. Things aren't really explained (I think it's being set up for a sequel but I needed more things explained in this book!) and the pacing was weird. The end seemed really rushed.
Big text and panels will make this text appealing to younger elementary school students who want to read graphic novels.
I could see some kids enjoying this book but it was just okay for me. Things aren't really explained (I think it's being set up for a sequel but I needed more things explained in this book!) and the pacing was weird. The end seemed really rushed.
Big text and panels will make this text appealing to younger elementary school students who want to read graphic novels.
January 22, 2022
New graphic novel series about gaming!
March 31, 2022
Strong series starter with collaboration and quick plot. Should be immensely popular in elementary libraries!
May 7, 2022
Feels a little like the start of an original Sailor Moon episode.
June 1, 2022
I know some kids who love action in graphic novels and are into gaming who I'm going to recommend this series too.
July 23, 2022
I did not really like arcade world I thought it was a little boring.
December 11, 2022
Read this book before gifting it to my younger sister. And even as an adult I found it interesting and engaging. Very creative. Beautiful art and story about friendship. 💓
January 31, 2023
read this one with my students
February 3, 2023
A(9) liked this much more than I did.
February 24, 2023
Reading these with 8yo - she really likes them, so I'm going with her ratings...
February 27, 2023
In love video game stories! This reminds me of the show Glitch Tech!
March 5, 2023
What a cute little comic. Very sweet, and easy to read. Perfect for Middle Year students.
May 17, 2023
cute middle grade graphic novel about two friends’ adventure when a video game comes to life. Definitely would be a fun time for a younger audience, but I enjoyed the illustrations nonetheless
August 8, 2023
Solid story my son enjoyed it. Not my type of story
March 14, 2024
Miss 9 enjoyed reading this and plans to read the next in the series.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews