Think Pink

10/12/2018

Sanity and Tallulah by Molly Brooks

"don't break any ethical research tenets or laws of nature until I get back"

Molly Brooks has done it. Pink is now the signature color for action and adventure. This brilliant comic stars eighth-graders who are smart and resourceful, devious and daring and __ girls!

Sanity Jones, along with her friend Tallulah Vega live onboard space station Wilnick. Tallulah’s mother, Science and Engineering Director, discovers the girls are deep into a clandestine scientific project. Sanity has created a three-headed kitten, affectionately named Princess Sparkle, Destroyer of Worlds.

"Let me make sure I'm following your thought process here. You're feeding your carnivorous bioengineering experiment experimental bioengineered meat that you cloned yourself-"

To everyone's horror, the kitten escapes and havoc reigns on Wilnick. A pet gerbil is murdered, something is chewing up major electrical system wires, and coolant leaks are wide-spread. Naturally everyone suspects the triple-headed feline.

The girls must locate Princess Sparkle, Destroyer of Worlds and possibly save her life (or is it lives?) They hope to discover the cause of the station's devastation and exonerate themselves. Under cover of night, creeping through air ducts, the girls are on the case. They discover the shocking truth and realize that the entire space station could be destroyed. It is up to the kids, with a huge assist from their parents, to save Wilnick.

Brooks doesn’t even try to get too scientific or technical, peppering the girl’s dialogue with terms such as taffimatter, dual-core turbinate, and gravity grenade. Readers will be captivated by the campy wild adventure without becoming overly concerned with how these things actually work.

The dialogue is snappy and spot on, capturing the spunky young explorers, their stressed-out parents, and the inner politics of a closed-community in outer space. Panels are drawn with a sure hand, featuring plenty of action and highly expressive faces. Use of numerous viewpoints brings added dimension. Of special note, the view from inside the air duct openings, looking out on the scene below is fantastic. And the pink. Did I mention all that vivid pink?

Sanity and Tallulah is the real deal. A dynamic duo who are willing to go where no one else dares to go. They are astute and more than a little bit reckless. The girls are constantly tinkering and experimenting, much to the chagrin of their parents, who view them with equal parts pride and exasperation. I hope Ms. Brooks is taking good care of her inking hand because demand for more Sanity and Tallalah is inevitable.