Hilo Presents: The Mighty

Gr 3-7–After 11 volumes and countless adventures, the fantastic crew of young superheroes in the Hilo series deserve a rest, but Winnick is already introducing new heroes within Hilo’s universe, just a town or two removed from the original series. The first book features Miranda, a brown-haired, tan-skinned girl who lives in an apartment in Willow City with her mom, an EMT, and her dad, who runs a Sephardic restaurant. Miranda’s got a close-knit family, good friends, and a keen sense of order, but Willow City has a crime problem, and duplicitous, arrogant mayor Paulina Primrose is behind it. One evening, Miranda finds herself transforming dramatically into a purple-furred yeti-like creature that possesses superhuman strength and awesome jumping capabilities and discovers that she can spring into action whenever someone needs rescue. Of course, ample, action-packed opportunities arise for her to use her newly discovered skill set. As the story progresses, Miranda’s backstory is revealed: she grew up craving and creating order and stability as her mother battled cancer, so it follows that Miranda and the Mighty, her superhero alter ego, just want everything to be alright. Winnick smartly weaves together the strength required to survive family crisis and the heroic resilience those experiences can bring into this goofy, slapstick adventure.