Marvel Super Hero Adventures: Deck the Malls!

Marvel Super Hero Adventures: Deck the Malls!
written by Mackenzie Cadenhead & Sean Ryan
illustrated by Derek Laufman
published by Marvel Press (2017)

The holidays are approaching, which means we’re currently getting assaulted with holiday-themed books and merchandise. Most of it doesn’t do much for me, but when the book features adorable Spider-Man and Spider-Gwen?

That gets my spider senses tingling.

Deck the Malls! is an early chapter book, so it’s perfect for the littlest Roarbot, who’s currently in 1st grade and reading up a storm. It’s also the first book in a series of chapter books featuring the Marvel Super Hero Adventures versions of the characters.

If you’re unfamiliar, Marvel Super Hero Adventures is a preschool animated series that has crossed over into toys and other merch. The show is a series of shorts featuring Spidey teaming up with various other Marvel superheroes, so it makes sense that the first book features the two most famous webcrawlers.

The books will follow a similar pattern of teaming up Spider-Man with other characters and are intended to “help introduce the newest Marvelites to the larger stable of heroes one exciting read at a time.”

In Deck the Malls!, Peter Parker is at the mall with Aunt May, waiting in a neverending line to pick up the newest Stark Smart Watch for Christmas. Leaving Aunt May in line so he can do some shopping, Peter crosses paths with Gwen Stacy before Venom attacks.

Most of the book then follows the epic cross-mall battle between Spider-Man, Spider-Gwen, and Venom. For young readers, it’s great fun.

Plus, there’s a recurring joke about fartleks. And I’m immature enough to admit that I laughed every time.

The book is an ideal length for young readers. It’s about 80 pages across 11 chapters, and it includes full-color art on almost every spread. It’s a fantastic debut of a promising series, and we’re definitely looking forward to where they go from here (in hopefully non-holiday themed books).