Henry Potty and the
Deathly Paper Shortage
Valerie Estelle Frankel
Reviewed by Sabrina Williams
In Henry Potty and the
Pet Rock, Valerie Estelle Frankel introduced readers to a
blissfully ignorant
superhero of the wizarding world, Henry Potty. Surrounded by his fellow
wizards
and “whiches” at Chickenfeet
Academy,
Henry’s key task was to defeat the heinous Lord Revolting before he
used Really
Wimpy’s pet rock to take over the world. With plenty of parody and lots
of
tongue-in-cheek humor, Henry was able to divert his attention from his
Henry
Potty action figures long enough to let Horrendous Gangrene tell him
how to
subdue Revolting—at least until the sequel.
Of course, Revolting is back in Henry Potty and the
Deathly Paper Shortage, book two in the
unauthorized Harry Potter parody series. Once again, Horrendous—er,
Henry---is
charged with battling his arch nemesis for control of the wizarding fan
base. To
defeat Revolting, Henry must find and destroy the hidden Plot Devices.
But he
has to figure out what they are first! That means venturing into
Revolting’s
stomping grounds, and Henry will need backup. As Henry, Really, and
Horrendous
travel the world in a magical RV, recruiting help and digging up Plot
Devices, a
host of magical characters will be introduced.
While The Pet Rock
was essentially an introduction to the quirky protagonist and only
covered
plotlines of the first few Harry Potter books, The Deathly
Paper Shortage covers most of the later releases and is
considerably longer (180 pages as opposed to 112 pages). The subject
matter
seems to have matured quite a bit, with a large focus on the courtship
and
wedding of Really Wimpy to Horrendous Gangrene, along with Professor
Bumbling
Bore’s widely publicized “coming out.” There is nothing inappropriate
for young
readers, but the plot of The Deathly
Paper Shortage has definitely moved from the low end of the
intended 9-12
age group to the more mature twelve-year-old reader (though the covers
of both
books indicate the stories are “for ages 2 to 222”).
Frankel appears to have gained confidence with this new
release and book flows smoothly. The plot is more intricate than that
of The Pet Rock, and incorporates aspects
of many of the Harry Potter novels, along with other well known
stories. Henry
Potty is pure fun with tons of laugh-out-loud scenes. Harry Potter fans
will
enjoy the light hearted take on a beloved hero. Some amusing
information about
Henry’s parentage is revealed. The
Deathly Paper Shortage is fast paced, with lots of action and
eccentric
characters. It’s perfect for a needed chuckle or to pass a lazy
afternoon.