Boss Baby meets The Baby-Sitters Club with a touch of Ocean’s Eleven in Detective Baby—a laugh-out-loud, hijinks-heavy graphic novel series from #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot.
Jenny isn’t your average babysitter. She has a secret superpower—she can understand baby talk. (A pretty lame superpower for a middle schooler, if you ask her.)
But Rosie isn’t your average baby—she’s the most brilliant (and devious) detective in town.
Jenny would rather do anything than babysit. But the money she raised for her dance team has been stolen, and she still needs to pay for their uniforms.
Fortunately, Rosie is sure if they both pull up their big girl panties, they can crack the case!
This itty-bitty investigator and her babysitting backup have no time to waste—there’s a mystery to solve before nap time! And with all the humorous antics and endless fun of Katie the Catsitter, plus the feel-good middle grade heart of Click, the journey is sure to have plenty of surprises along the way.
Press
A quotidian mystery alchemizes into a standout gumshoe caper in this effervescent graphic novel series opener from Cabot (The Princess Diaries) and Allore (Hard Lacquer, for adults), which stars a sleuthing baby and her babysitter accomplice… Stylized artwork in cheerful, sunny palettes skillfully injects action and emotion into a tale of burgeoning independence. Wry text and animated illustrations prove a winning combination in this superb offering. Ages 8–12.
A girl with an odd gift reluctantly becomes a babysitter.
Newly appointed the dance team captain at her school, Jenny Newhouse is responsible for fundraising for new uniforms, and she’s chosen, somewhat impractically, to stash all the money in her purse. When the purse goes missing, she decides to secretly replenish the funds by taking babysitting gigs. Though she doesn’t particularly enjoy hanging out with babies, she has a spectacular skill for childcare: She can understand baby talk! Her first client, sporting a fedora, stands up in her crib and boldly introduces herself as “Rosie Woodson. The world’s first detective baby!” Soon, this amusing odd couple are mixing crime-solving work with stroller walks, ice cream treats, and playground time. As the main mystery—the case of Jenny’s missing purse—steadily approaches its solution, the sleuthing duo encounter a delightful, diverse cast of schoolmates and suspects, among them Jenny’s best friend, Vesper; her potential crush, Marco; her nerdy twin brother, Dave; and her nemesis, Chloe, captain of the cheerleading team. The cartooning is buzzy and bright; the pastel pink and purple palette is effervescently cute, and characters’ faces are playfully imbued with manga-style emotions (big eyes and broad reactions aplenty). While the mystery itself is engaging, Rosie and her baby pals are irresistible, the true stars of the show. Jenny and Rosie have pale skin and red hair; there is some diversity among their community.
A promising, character-driven series starter featuring the cutest supporting cast imaginable. (Graphic fiction. 8-12)
