The science content makes Zig and Wikki a good choice for classroom use, perhaps for a lesson on pond ecology. From an adult perspective, these facts may seem arbitrary, but from a kid’s, they add a whole new level of interest to the text what five-year-old wouldn’t find it fascinating that some frogs shed and eat their skin, or that flies have the ability to sense whether food has spoiled? The script features call-outs with information about the various “pets” that Zig and Wikki try to capture: a dragonfly, a frog, a raccoon, a common housefly. On the plus side, Spiegelman does a fine job of making Earth science an integral part of the story. It’s a cute gag, but less proficient readers may struggle with the small font size, while others might not make the connection between the change in typesetting and the change in Wikki’s height. After Wikki is zapped with a shrink ray, for example, his dialogue appears in teeny print. Though kids may laugh at Zig and Wikki’s reactions to familiar animals, other jokes will be lost on the book’s intended audience. The humor, in particular, is a mixed bag.
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