When families get blended, so do their animals. Gizmo, a genius guinea pig who can read and wears eyeglasses, and Wedgie, a much less intelligent corgi who wears a superhero cape, each alternately relate their interwoven stories in distinct first-pet voices.Unfortunately for the guinea pig, his owner, Elliot, is forced to let his new, annoying little sister, Jasmine, help take care of Gizmo. Jasmine enjoys dressing him up in tutus and housing him in Barbie's lavish (pink) former abode. But Gizmo is an intrepid sort of critter with evil plans to rule the world, and he does find Barbie's rucksack useful for carrying gear as he engages in some nighttime adventures, not all of them successful. Through comments Elliot makes, readers learn of his unhappiness with his new family situation, although this second storyline takes a back seat to Gizmo's scheming. Acting as his and Elliot's foil, Wedgie, who calls Gizmo "the Furry Potato," is convincingly doglike in his eager embrace of just about everything. Fisinger's numerous illustrations are action-packed and appropriately humorous, especially in their depiction of Wedgie's never-ending enthusiasm. An opening gallery introduces Jasmine's family as Latino and Elliot and his father as black. While the tale is never laugh-out-loud funny, it's amusing and imaginative enough to sustain interest for readers new to chapter books. Gizmo is more droll than likable, but Wedgie is attractively steadfast and amiable, in the end rescuing both Gizmo and the story. (Fantasy. 7-10)

Gr 2-5Gizmo may be a guinea pig, but he considers himself to be an evil genius. When Elliot and his dad, along with Gizmo, move in with Jasmine and Jackson, their mom, and Wedgie, their dog, Gizmo vows destruction. Wedgie, or Super Wedgie, as he likes to be known, wears a red cape, loves to eat food off the floor, and does not like the vet. Through both animals' alternating points of view, readers learn about the adjustments of moving and becoming a new, blended family. Snippets of human conversations and lists of evil plans give a hilarious and unique perspective to this story of two families coming together. The illustrations and short chapters help break up the text for young readers, while the dialogue, formatted like lines in a script, make this ideal for readers theater programs. VERDICT This first installment is great for one-on-one sharing or independent reading. A solid purchase for libraries looking for early chapter books.Shana Morales, Windsor Public Library, CT

Gizmo, a bespectacled guinea pig rry, a cavy th aspirations of world domination is dismayed when he's moved from his cozy ecohabitat to a Barbie playhouse (horrors!). His owner Elliot's dad recently remarried, and they moved to a new house with a whole new family, including stepsiblings Jasmine and Jackson and irrepressible corgi Wedgie. Gizmo doesn't really care about all that, as long as he can eventually leave his infernal pink prison and enact his evil-genius schemes. Meanwhile, ever-jubilant Wedgie is eager to welcome his new family members, including the strange furry potato Elliot is so protective of. Gizmo and Wedgie alternate narrating duties in this hilarious chapter book, and their over-the-top personalities make the story clip along. Overheard snippets of conversations among the humans in the story concisely add emotional stakes, such as Elliot's reluctance to adjust to his new family, without distracting from the comical pet narrators. Occasionally the humor gets a bit repetitive, but little ones elated by enthusiastic Wedgie and grumpy Gizmo will be too busy giggling to notice. Final art not seen.