Craig of the Creek meets the schoolyard in this irresistibly fun middle-grade graphic novel from Marcus Emerson, author of the hit Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja series. When imaginations run wild at recess, anything can happen. Normal kids become world-saving heroes, girls become power-hungry pirates, and zombies take over the school after being infected by the dreaded epidemic―cooties! It's up to Scrap, his partner Yoshi (who is most definitely not a sidekick!), and Clinton, the baddest cowboy in the, um, badlands, to stop recess from collapsing into total apocalyptic chaos. With dynamic full-color art and nonstop action, Recess Warriors is perfect for fans of The Bad Guys and Investigators . Gr 3–6—An imaginative tale of a recess hero who rescues the playground from a zombie infestation. Bryce (aka Scrap) is a superhero determined to save recess. His classmates are dropping like flies as they become infested with cooties, a virus that has mutated and is now transforming them into zombies. All areas of the playground are affected, and Scrap will stop at nothing to put things right. This book is filled with colorful, appealing illustrations, from the playground map that opens the narrative to the explanation of how this graphic novel was created at the end. Character introductions appear as each protagonist makes an entrance. Vibrant images keep the action flowing throughout this story, which is filled with pirates, cooties, cowboys, and zombies—something to please every reader. VERDICT Give to fans of Doug TenNapel's Cardboard or Judd Winick's "Hilo" series.—Jenni Frencham, Columbus Public Library, WI “Emerson creates a rich world full of epic adventures and hilarious one-liners . . . It’s highly imaginative and strikingly familiar to the real games kids play. Emerson’s story is only matched by his artwork; richly detailed and textured, his stylized figures are imbued with dynamic movement, and the variety of skin tones among the kids on the playground is refreshing. This archly funny, spot-on comic adventure will hit home for elementary-school kids far and wide.” ― Booklist , starred review “A welcome throwback to the way recess should be.” ― Kirkus Reviews “ An imaginative tale of a recess hero who rescues the playground from a zombie infestation . . . Give to fans of Doug TenNapel’s Cardboard or Judd Winick’s “Hilo” series.” ― School Library Journal “Now this is how recess should be―cooperative, technology-free fun . . . Readers will eagerly await the next volume.” ― The Bulletin “ While it’s hard to compete with recess, this book serves up enough excitement to be a close second.” ― Publishers Weekly Marcus Emerson is the author of the hit Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja series and the Secret Agent 6th Grader series. His career started in 2nd grade when he discovered Garfield . He grew up playing Super Mario Bros. 4 , watching Thundercats , and reading comics like X-Men , Superman , and Wildcats . He lives in Eldridge, Iowa with his wife and children.