The Adventures of Vicant the Venomous - by Ethel Steinmetz Marmont

Book Synopsis

Two spiders threaten the free world with truth-telling venom and evil plots. They hitch a ride with a boy who has unwittingly played right into their hands... or rather, legs. Will their villainous plot begin by taking over Ryan's fourth-grade classroom?

The Adventures of Vicant the Venomous will remind parents of Saturday morning cartoons such as Pinky and the Brain or books like Stink and the Hairy, Scary Spider. With a humorous tone, silly characters, and a bit of educational content, this zany book is perfect for the elementary-aged child in your life.

We glimpse Ryan and Vicant's future when the college-age Ryan sees a fuzzy, crawly spider climb out of his Super Surprise Flakes cereal box. The spider is Vicant, Ryan's old nemesis and a super-intelligent being with mysterious origins. Their reunion sets the stage for the tale of how Vicant and Ryan first met. It also lets the reader know that there will be many adventures ahead for the globe-trotting spider who plans to take over the world (or at least the United States and Canada) with his truth-telling venom.

Nine-year-old Ryan first met Vicant under his bed as he searched for a lost LEGO brick. His Aunt Lori's broom-wielding incident leads to a jar-bound imprisonment for the spider. Still, his real adventure begins when Vicant and his spider wife, Vincenza, hitch a ride in his lunch pail to his fourth-grade classroom at Madison Elementary. There, the arachnids create merry mayhem during his math quiz. Controlled chaos ensues when Ryan's teacher falls victim to a mind-controlling spider bite, resulting in the distribution of a large amount of chocolate and a pleasantly forgotten math quiz.

Vicant and his wife, Vincenza, are a lovable duo of villainous plotters with world domination in sight. Readers get a brief preview of Ryan's visit to Washington D.C. as an adult, where Vicant and Vincenza have plans to use Ryan's longer legs and opposable thumbs to accomplish their goals. Can Ryan thwart their nefarious schemes before the Capitol falls to their fangs? Is Ryan's fourth grade classroom just the beginning of Vicant's nipping spree?

Vicant entered Ryan's life in fourth grade, where he caused a bit of merry mayhem at school. (This involved a large amount of chocolate and a pleasantly forgotten math quiz.) In a glimpse of the future, we know that Vicant will be up to the same old tricks-and the White House is a slightly bigger target than Madison Elementary School.

With zany characters, a killer plot, and just the slightest hint of educational content, this book is a pretty safe read . . . as long as you don't get bitten! Neeiip!