Drew Pendous and the Camp Color War (Drew Pendous #1)

by Cool School, Drew Pendous

It’s camp color war—but Grace Cale is sabotaging the games by stealing all the color! Can Drew find a way to stop her?

The Cool School YouTube channel is a sensation, with more than one million subscribers!

It’s Camp Cool School vs. Camp Cruel School in color war. Let the games begin! Even though Cruel School students love to cheat, it looks like Team Cool will rule the day . . . until Grace Cale arrives determined to suck all the colors out of the world. Can Drew use teamwork—and his drawing skills—to stop her evil plot? This very young graphic novel is lots of fun! 

96 pages, Paperback

Published April 9, 2019

Reviews

[Jana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from the publisher in exchange for a review. This boldly illustrated, exhuberant book is number one in a series that features the kids from Cool School and their nemeses at the Cruel School. The kids from Cool School have a hero in Drew Pendous, who has a Magic Pen, which he uses to draw things to life. Drew's twin, Ray Blank, attends the Cruel School and uses his Magic Eraser to rub out all sorts of things. In this volume, all of the kids and teachers have ended the school year and are heading to summer camp. These two schools will face off in a Color Contest, but wind up teaming up with each other against a villain who is determined to steal all of the colors of the world with a mighty vacuum. The book is sort of silly, but it's aimed at kids aged 5-9. I know plenty of young readers that will have a great time reading about the antics of these kids. It's a fun, light read that will be great during the summer months!

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm obviously not the audience for this graphic novel, which is aimed at early readers, 1st or 2nd grade. Although I read plenty of books for that age group that I do enjoy. I like some of the cute character types, but if the overall theme is cheating is bad and it doesn't pay off to be mean, it doesn't show it. The main character tries to frequently cheat with mighty pen ultimate! I'm sure some kids will love this.

[Samuel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I dunno, maybe this is better if you've seen and loved the YouTube show it's based on. I found it a shallow, aggressively ugly slog through hackneyed tropes, an underdeveloped world, and prefab characters. Even by the admittedly dim standards of book adaptations of shows for first graders, this is pretty meager fare.

[Amanda Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little book is a lot of fun. It teaches the importance of teamwork, even with people that you may not get along with. I don't generally enjoy graphic novels or comic book type books, but I actually found myself smiling through the book.

[Sarah Truelove · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book about teamwork.

[Renee MA · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this is the first in the book series, it seems that the writers assume you have watched the Youtube videos that the book is based on? I have not, so it felt like I was reading a book that was farther into the series. It still made sense, and I liked the mix of graphic novel & traditional text, however, it was not a great story.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on a popular YouTube character, this book series begins with a typical scenario - competition between two rival summer camps. Drew and his friends are at Camp Cool School, while the kids at Camp Cruel School include Drew's evil twin Ray Blank. When the two teams have a Color War, Drew's friends on the Blue Team have to work hard to overcome the cheating of Ray's Red Team. There are tug-of-war, arm wrestling, and dodgeball competitions which keep everyone working to come out on top. But then Grace Cale shows up to steal all the color from both teams. Can they come up with a plan to defeat her and keep her color vacuum from leaving them all grayed out, or will their rivalry allow Cale to win the day?

Fans who are familiar with the characters will enjoy the chance to see Drew and others in new adventures. Other books in the series have the group facing off against pirates, experiencing time travel, and confronting their worst enemies.

I read an ARC provided by the publisher for review purposes.