Penguin Random House

ISBN 9780143780816

July 31, 2017

Random House Australia Children’s

$14.99

Having a really bad first day at a new school and mother/daughter conflicts are nothing new but this new graphic novel for younger readers presents these in a completely fresh style.

Readers who enjoy cartoons of the Adventure Time ilk will really get into the comic style of the graphics as well as the strangeness of Opposite Land.  Steve has a terrible argument with her mum and storms off into her room with some stupid book that was her grandfather’s. It’s so ridiculous you can’t even read the writing in it. That is, until she happens to let it fall in front of the mirror and realises that the writing is all reversed.

As soon as she starts to read the words aloud Stevie is weirdly transported to Opposite Land where indeed everything is opposite!

Where socks wear feet,

Broccoli is meat,

Behind is ahead, and people

Poop from their head!

But that’s not the real problem with this crazy place. The country and its people are all in real danger from Emperor Never who took over when the last of the princesses disappeared. Now the Opposites believe that Stevie is that princess and she needs to save them.  Will Stevie be able to help and get back to her own land?

And more importantly, will her experience help her to sort things out with her mum and the new school?

Recommended for readers from around eight years upwards.