Maxine by Bob Graham (review)

Max is delighted to welcome his new sibling, who shows early promise of fitting right into her superhero family (Max, BCCB 9/00). “Such tiny little fingers. Such a perfect little mask,” her grandparents gush, as the family showers little Maxine with a hand-knitted cape, soft boots, and Max’s treasured copy of Veterinary Treatment for Animals, which Maxine is reading fluently in no time. The little prodigy’s first solo foray outside the nuclear family opens up a new world, however, and she regards her older classmates’ lifestyle and attire with longing. At first her elders are aghast: “Maxine! Superheroes do NOT wear jeans,” but her wise and loving mother brings her to the store for a branded pair of jeans that “gripped her like a fist.” But can she fly in them? Does she even want to fly in them? Just what kind of life does she want? As she gifts her mask to a little superhero wannabe at the school fair and then takes to the sky with her brother and parents, it’s clear Maxine will be whatever she decides to be. Graham’s oversized picture book is infused with the sly humor and domestic warmth of his earlier outings, with the lumpy, baggily clad Thunderbolt-Lightning family comically improbable in their gravity-defying aerobatics. The “Be yourself” message is direct, pointed, and delivered with a heavier hand than Graham’s work for a slightly older audience, but preschoolers trying new social roles on for size should find this title a comfortable fit.