Fizzopolis: The Trouble with Fuzzwonker Fizz

by Patrick Carman, Brian Sheesley (Illustrator)

Overview

Welcome to Fizzopolis! Home to the world’s greatest soda pop, Fuzzwonker Fizz, and the Fizzies—fuzzy, fizzy creatures that live only in Fizzopolis. Join Harold and Floyd in this wacky new illustrated series from bestselling author Patrick Carman and Emmy Award–winning illustrator Brian Sheesley.

Harold Fuzzwonker is an ordinary kid with an extraordinary fizzy friend, Floyd. But Floyd’s a secret—like a top super-secret. Harold must protect him, as well as the family recipe for Fuzzwonker Fizz, from the evil Snood Candy Factory. But it’s hard to guard a secret when he’s your best good buddy and he always escapes from your backpack!

Harold chronicles his epic adventures—with a little artistic help from Floyd—that are sure to have Fuzzwonker Fizz squirting out your nose!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062393906
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	03/01/2016
Series:	Fizzopolis Series , #1
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.65(d)
Lexile:	690L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Patrick Carman is the New York Times bestselling author of over thirty books, including the acclaimed series the Land of Elyon and Floors and the teen superhero novel Thirteen Days to Midnight. A multimedia pioneer, Patrick authored The Black Circle, the fifth title in the 39 Clues series, and the Dark Eden, Skeleton Creek, Trackers, Fizzopolis, and Voyagers series. An enthusiastic reading advocate, Patrick has visited more than a thousand schools, developed village library projects in Central America, and created author outreach programs for communities. He lives in Walla Walla, Washington, with his family. You can visit him online at www.patrickcarman.com.

Editorial Reviews

01/11/2016
Ten-year-old Harold Fuzzwonker gets a crash course in the underground world of Fizzopolis, populated by furry/goopy creatures called Fizzies that were accidentally created by Harold’s father, an absentminded inventor responsible for a soda that “makes the longest burps in the history of ever.” This is the print debut for animator/director/producer Sheesley, and it’s a successful pairing: Carman’s story has the rapid pace and joke-dense writing of a Nickelodeon cartoon, which is precisely the vibe conjured by Sheesley’s frenzied b&w artwork. Burp jokes and slapstick abound as Harold brings an unpredictable Fizzy named Floyd to school, all building to a somewhat abrupt ending that suggests that corporate shenanigans await in the next book. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Susan Schulman, Susan Schulman Literary Agency. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Fizzopolis bubbles over with belly burps-and belly laughs.

Tom Watson

Carman’s wacky words and Sheesley’s loony artwork go together like soda pop and belches!

Tom Angleberger

Lots of kooky laughs for aspiring mad scientists who are going to want to make their own Fizzies.

Jim Benton

01/01/2016
Gr 2–5—Carman ventures into the realm of comedy with endearing characters in this hilarious story of a young boy named Harold Fuzzwonker. Harold lives in the shadow of his scientist father, who is the creator of an amazing soda pop called Fuzzwonker Fizz, which can ignite a belch that is rumored to be the longest and loudest in the world. Dr. Fuzzwonker is always looking over his shoulder to make sure that his secret recipe will not be stolen by his enemy, Mr. Snood, the owner of a candy factory. Mr. Snood's son, Gavin, is in Harold's class and is always trying to find out the dirt on the Fuzzwonkers. When Harold's friend Floyd makes his way into the Snoods' candy factory, Harold must save him—and the secrets of the Fuzzwonker Fizz recipe. With a Ren and Stimpy feel, Sheesley's illustrations add charm and humor to the story. Fans of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" (Abrams) or "Captain Underpants" (Scholastic) are sure to enjoy this slapstick romp. VERDICT A great addition to any elementary library.—Katy Charles, Virgil Elementary School, Cortland, NY

School Library Journal

2015-11-17
In this effervescent startup, Harold discovers that the soda pop his dad invented produces more than just awesome belches. Harold is invited as a 10th birthday present to tour at last the secret underground lab/factory where his loving but distracted adoptive father manufactures the wildly popular (and sugar free!) Fuzzwonker Fizz. He is delighted to discover that the process makes not only froth, but Fizzies—popeyed creatures who, not unlike Oompa-Loompas, cheerfully live and toil in the subterranean community of Fizzopolis. Disaster nearly ensues when Harold recklessly takes Floyd, a small green Fizzy with a truly short attention span, to school. After several misadventures, Floyd is carried off to the rival Snood Candy Factory by archenemy Garvin Snood. Will the Snoods, makers of the heavily sugared Flooze, foundation for dozens of ghastly-sounding products, pull the tab on Fizzopolis and the secret formula for Fuzzwonker Fizz? No, as it happens, but another explosive secret does pop before the episode's abrupt cutoff. Stay tuned. Sheesley splashes silly cartoon sketches through Harold's sugar rush of a narrative. A gas, despite a sour whiff in the supporting cast and a plotline that's not quite topped off. (Adventure. 8-10)

Kirkus Reviews

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