Zig and Wikki in Something Ate My Homework

Zig and Wikki

by Nadja Spiegelman, Trade Loeffler

A first comic for brand-new readers! Can Zig and Wikki catch a pet before they become a snack? Zig and Wikki land on a planet full of strange creatures like flies, frogs, and raccoons, just when it seems to be lunchtime! In their hilarious search for a pet, the two friends, imagined by Nadja Spiegelman and Trade Loeffler, go on adventures that are out of this world, and young readers learn about nature in our world thanks to the fascinating facts woven into every twist of the exciting plot. Spotlight is a division of ABDO Group. Grades K-3.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Childrens, Comics, Fiction, Humor, Animals, Picture Books

40 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Nadja Spiegelman is the Eisner-award nominated author of the ZIG AND WIKKI graphic series for young children and LOST IN NYC: A SUBWAY ADVENTURE. Her forthcoming memoir, "I'm Supposed to Protect You from All This," will be published by Riverhead Books in August 2016. She currently divides her time between Paris and Brooklyn.

Reviews

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zig needs a pet! On his planet, one of his homework assignments is to bring a pet to class. Soon, he and his friend, Wikki, find themselves on Earth for the very first time. Can they capture a creature from Earth to serve as their pet?
This is a library-bound new edition of the first tale featuring our small alien friends. Much of the humor of the series comes from the minuscule size of the protagonists. Their adventures on Earth provide an opportunity to present scientific information in a fresh way. Wikki, who is a robot-like alien, will periodically spout interesting facts about the phenomena the pair encounters. This volume focuses on the circle of life at a small pond. We learn facts about flies, dragonflies, frogs, and raccoons, as the pair attempt to capture progressively more threatening potential pets.
This team knows how to present facts in an interesting way. The story is filled with action and the periodic informational panels are genuinely interesting. The illustrations are engaging and accessible and bright, without being too much. The team is aiming at early readers, and thus the story is brief. Kids will love this comic if they get their hands on it. \\pro review

I really like this series. Great early reader comic with nonfic content. :)

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zig and Wikki: Something Ate My Homework by Nadja Spiegelman, illustrated by Trade Loeffler follows two alien children who acccidentally land on Earth and discover our weird life forms, as they try to find a new pet for a homework assignment.

The text uses word bubbles along with Wikki's facts about animals that appear on his screen, some action words, and Chapter headings. A page about the authors and Wikki's fun facts appear at the end of the book.

The illustrations are fun. Animals pictured are a fly, dragonflies, frog and a raccoon. My favorite images include the cover, class zoo, where are we, perfect landing series, glop, dragonflies, riding frog, lasso raccoon tail, and final image.

This is a clever combination of an interesting plot and science facts presented smoothly within the humorous story. The informative and gross facts will attract readers who need beginning readers, and enjoy the graphic novel style. Zig and Wikki are likeable characters that would be fun to meet again. Recommended for school and public library collections.

For ages 5 to 8, graphic novles, beginning readers, animals, science, pets, science fiction, and fans of Nadja Spiegelman and Trade Loeffler.

[Nan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I may be writing very similar reviews for a little while. I'm looking for comics which would appeal to the type of students I work with -- mostly boys, mostly on the ASD spectrum, mostly immigrant or African American, mostly picture oriented, kinesthetic learners, mostly emergent, some in third grade reading at kindergarten level. This is getting close. The subject is appealing. There are aliens and bad boys and little tidbits of science.

[Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is mostly about aliens getting a pet.

The most interesting thing I learned was about fly spitting. Flies use spit to turn their food into liquid, then they suck it up again.

After reading the book I would like to know more about frog croaking.

Yes I would recommend this book because you get to learn about animals.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated this as an adult. It had cute moments and I liked the facts interspersed. Graham really grew tired of it halfway through. We stopped 2/3s of the way through and we'll try again tonight. Maybe he was just to sleepy for reading.

[Sopana T · Rating 5 out of 5]

มันฮามาก ขำมาก ส่วนตัวคิดว่าเล่มนี้ The must read เลยสำหรับเด็กที่เริ่มอ่านเอง ไม่รู้เด็กๆจะอ่านแล้วเข้าใจความกวนกะการเล่นภาษาของตัวละครไหม แต่เราอ่านนี่ก๊ากๆ ชอบอีกอย่างคือมีแทรกความรู้เรื่องสัตว์แบบNon Ficion สนุกดี จบเร็วไปหน่อย

[Darlene Ivy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zig and Wikki get lost and end up on Earth where they struggle to complete Zig's homework assignment of adding a pet to the class zoo. A shrink ray and up close and personal experiences with a fly, dragonflies, frog, and raccoon make their time in marsh exciting.

[Serpil Çelebi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Çizgi romanın yanı sıra enteresan bilgiler de var içinde. Az buçuk iğrenç ama olsun, bilgi bilgidir. 😂

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun sci-fi pair consider various pets to bring to school for their assignment.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This newest in TOON Book’s graphic novels for early readers will please reluctant older readers as well as newer readers, combining humorous comics with interesting nonfiction snippets. Zig, a cyclops alien child, is out flying in his spaceship with his best friend Wikki, a walking computer. When Zig's teacher calls telling him that his homework is late, Zig lands the spaceship on the nearest planet, Earth, in search of a class pet. Each time they meet an animal on Earth, Wikki's computer flashes with interesting information, such as “FLY spitting: Flies use spit to turn their food into liquid, then they suck it up again.” In this debut, Spiegelman (daughter of Art Spiegelman) captures a great sense of timing and flow for young readers. They'll love the gross facts she includes, and will want to keep reading to find out what animal Zig takes home for show and tell. Along the way, Zig and Wikki learn about how the food chain operates, as each animal is eaten by a larger predator. As always, Zig and Wikki wind up in trouble. Zig accidentally zaps Wikki with the shrinking ray, turning him into a mini-computer. This reader will work well for older reluctant readers at low reading level, since Zig and Wikki are not overly cute and do not have an obvious age. It also could work for younger readers who are comfortable reading whole sentences. The sentences are short, and the vocabulary reasonably simple except in the science sections. It's funny, quick moving, and works in quick facts about animals into the story in an effective blend of fiction and nonfiction.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reason for Reading: My son read this aloud to me as his reader.

Zig is late handing in his assignment, a pet for the class zoo. While he and Wikki, an animate computer, are flying around the galaxy they find themselves near Earth where they drop by to see if they can find an animal for Zig's assignment.

This Toon Reader is slightly different than all the others to date. It is described on the website as being "science-based". How this happens is that every now and then when the two are confronted with an unknown element Wikki's screen will turn on and a large oval display will show up with an interesting fact about said element. These aren't just your boring little information blurbs either; they are very interesting information, often humorous or gross, on the subject such as "Fly Spitting: Flies use spit to turn their food into liquid, then they suck it up, again."

My learning disabled 9yo really enjoyed this book. As far as both of us are concerned, we'd say this is the best graphic novel Toon Books has put out so far (and we've read them all)! Even though the book is in the 3rd level, ds was so interested in the story that he even surprised himself at how well he could read the book. The story has all the ingredients an easy reader calls for: interesting plot, humour, enjoyable characters and a surprise ending. We hope Zig and Wikki will return in further adventures!

[Jasmine Yanich · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a graphic novel that tells the story of Zig and Wikki, two aliens who are traveling in space when their teacher comes up on the screen telling Zig that his homework is late. Zig needs to find a pet for the class zoo ASAP. They think that they are heading to Zig's grandmother's house but they realize too late that they are headed to Earth instead. Zig decides that maybe they can find a pet for him on this planet instead. They run into a fly, dragonfly, frog, and raccoon and fail to capture any of them. Scared, they run away from the raccoon before they get eaten and once they get back on the ship they think that they failed to find a pet until they see the fly still on Zig's chocolate bar from earlier.

This book could be used to introduce graphic novels and how they are different from just regular picture books. The aspect of "something ate my homework" is a lie that students have used in the past when they forget to do their homework, so you can talk to students about forgetting to do their homework and encouraging them not to lie about their homework, and just be honest if they truly forgot to do it. In the book there are different facts about each of the Earth animals that Zig and Wikki run into so you could discuss the nonfiction aspect of the book with the students and how picture books sometimes include both fiction and nonfiction within one book.

[Erin Reilly-Sanders · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a TOON book, I thought this was more successful plot-wise than Little Mouse Gets Dressed. At least something happens with a little bit of suspense, some exploration, and a bit of a chase scene. My biggest concern is that the story feels unsupported and a little random. Maybe the set up of tiny aliens exploring earth in search of a “pet” to take to class is a little too obvious with the insertion of facts about the animals they encounter. The art is okay, but didn’t really grab me. I think maybe the main characters are a little difficult to focus on within the frame with a lot of odd looking shapes creating their bodies. Anyway, I’d sort of like to like it more as an easy reader with appropriate text and a little bit of real information throw in, but something in it just doesn’t really appeal to me.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zig and Wikki in Something Ate My Homework is a graphic novel about 2 alien friends zipping through space. Zig needs to find a pet for school and ends up travelling to earth to find a pet. When he comes across possible pets such as a fly or a frog, the book knits in facts about these creatures. Some of the facts mentioned were new to me. Additional facts are also listed on the last page of the book. I thought this was a humorous, light, entertaining book appropriate for early elementary aged students.

[Terry]

My daughter loved this book and re-read it several times. The first time through she was mostly interested in the story. In subsequent readings, she focused on the boxes with facts about the various insects and animals. Then she made the "food chain" connections about what eats what.

To read our full review, go to the Reading Tub.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book featuring two funny young aliens named Zig and Wikki. The graphic novels are entertaining and the stories actually teach a little about science, too. This tale depicts Zig and Wikki searching for a pet to bring back to school. We all read this book independently and we all agreed that it was a fun story.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two alien children land on Earth and discover our weird life forms, e.g., houseflies, dragonflies, and frogs. The mixture of science information with a fantastic story if reminiscent of the Magic School Bus series. Factoids about each with realistic renderings are laid over the dominant cartoony style, resulting in a kind of post-modern look without delving deeply into the scientific part.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the graphic novel-style easy reader Toon Books - this installment brings aliens to earth looking for a pet for their class zoo - each of the creatures they encouter is also presented with interesting facts that will may encourage new readers to seek out more information about the animals. (did you know dragonflies can fly forwards, backwards and sideways?)

[Beth Kakuma-Depew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Toon book graphic novel about a little alien boy and his robot-computer helper who go hunting for a pet. Declan (age6) loves it. I was luke-warm about it, as the non-ficiton asides seemed rather clunky mixed into the fiction, and mild action was predictable. But I underestimated the appeal of it!

[Justyn Rampa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun little book about aliens working on a homework assignment, you know, like they do.

There are some fun facts about bugs and other animals that were equal parts informative and disgusting.

This is the first book that seemed really geared towards boys and I bet a lot of little boys would love these characters.

Well done!

[Patrice Sartor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the artwork and story to be just average. I liked that every so often a fact will be presented in a different panel, one that describes what the characters are dealing with (like explaining why male frogs croak). This is a great addition to a wonderful idea---graphic novels for the easy reader set! I only wish the execution were more to my taste.

[Sam Wojtaszek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was cute-- aliens learning about various species (and the food chain) on earth while trying (and accidentally succeeding!) in finding a space pet for the class project. Wiki, who is like a little computer or TV, adds some nonfiction to the story as his screen flashes on with factual tidbits and images of new specimens they find.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story with cute pictures in comic book style. Alien Zig has to bring a pet to class, and when he and Wikki land on Earth, he decides to catch an earth animal. However, each one he tries to catch is eaten by something bigger. Very good for elementary age children.

[Alison Criner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll admit I wasn't crazy about the book. I thought it was a little boring. But I think kids that are learning to read and emerging readers might like it. Also, it is in graphic format and and lots of kids are into graphic books.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how it incorporates non-fiction.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great easy reader graphic novel for elementary level. Story is plodding but it it is great for the age group.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple graphic novel. Fun space adventure.

[Jennie Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for science too because it deals with animals and the "circle of life" so to speak! Love Zig and Wikki!!

[Mason · Rating 3 out of 5]

!