Wheaton, Kansas, seventh-grader Tucker MacBean loves comic books, so when his favorite comic has a contest to create a sidekick, he is hopeful that he can win,

"This sequel to The Adventures of Beanboy combines comic illustrations, a small-town bully facing off against a budding artist, and a rousing, decisive game of

When Tucker MacBean's favorite comic has a contest for kids to create the hero's new sidekick, he hopes he has found a way to help his mother and fix his family

This autobiographical novel takes the form of letters between Vera, a widely traveled playwright, and six-year-old Flavia, the niece of Vera's lover, violinist