Charles could not be more appalled by his situation. His family has moved him from their sleepy suburban home to the expansive, and statistically unsafe, Echo City. The city is dirty, his new bedroom is too small, and the Asian market on the corner doesn’t sell his brand of chicken nuggets! To make matters worse, Echo City appears to be infested with ghosts, trolls, and an endless variety of monsters, all of which would not be opposed to taking a bite out of Charles.
Enter Margo Maloo: Monster Mediator. Her job is to resolve conflicts between children and monsters, and Charles is about to find out that she does not always rule in the child’s favor.
One reason I love this graphic novel is that Charles is learning and changing during the story. Charles starts out as a spoiled, self-centered, and small minded brat. When he asks for Margo’s help, she has some bad news; the monsters causing his problems were there before he was, and he needs to respect that. He can’t just barge into a place and bulldoze the existing tenants, because she won’t let him. After some tough-love lessons from Margo, Charles learns how to respect others and live in a diverse world.
This book features some impressively subtle metaphors. While not directly teaching lessons, The Creepy Case Files will expose readers to the dynamics behind heavy topics such as imperialism, manifest destiny, and modern gentrification. Hopefully, stories like these will give kids the groundwork to fully grasp these topics when they are older.
Books in the Park 