I have fond memories of sitting in my orthodontist’s office as a teenager, reading Lynn Johnston’s For Better or For Worse books while waiting for my turn to get my braces adjusted. Each monthly visit was a chance to catch up on the latest antics of my favorite comic book family. In her new picture book series AlottaBotz, this beloved Canadian author offers a new generation of readers another favourite family to follow.
I received these books for review courtesy of the publisher; all opinions expressed remain my own. This post contains affiliate links; as an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Three Fun AlottaBotz Books
The Botshop introduces us to Timothy Bot, a bored little robot who is new in town. He doesn’t like any of Mombot’s ideas for what to do, but then Grandbot shows up. Together, Timothy and Grandbot make a dogbot. Now, Timothy has a new friend to play with all the time—and his dogbot helps him meet the other kids on the block too.
Marvelous Things continues the story of Timothy’s new town—a town without any pets. Once the neighbours meet Timothy’s dogbot, they all want their own pets. Soon, Grandbot is helping everyone design their own petbots. At the end of the book, the town throws a big party for Grandbot and all the petbots.
For pets are essential, and pets are a must—
a pet is a friend you can love and can trust.
With a pet by your side, every wrong becomes right—
’cause a pet makes you happy!
In A Dog With No Name, Timothy faces a problem: his dogbot runs away because he hasn’t named it. Timothy searches the neighbourhood for his dogbot and finds that he’s fallen into a pond in the park. With Grandbot’s help, he rescues his dogbot and cleans him up again, then gives him a suitable name.
Our Thoughts on AlottaBotz
My 6-year-old loved these books as soon as they arrived. He’s always been interested in robots and anything related, so he was delighted by both the stories and the bright, fun pictures. I enjoy the rhyming storyline as much as he does, while the detailed pictures tell as much about the story as the words do. Lynn told The Vancouver Sun, “Because I know that a little mind is going faster than you could ever imagine, I put as much in each drawing as I could without cluttering them up.”
AlottaBotz are engaging stories about a very relatable family. I’ve heard a lot of “I’m bored!” from my kids this summer and have been trying to encourage them to be more creative, just as Grandbot encourages Timothy. We also enjoy helping our neighbours and getting involved in our community, as the Bot family does in Book 2 thanks to Grandbot’s innovations. Finally, Timothy has to learn how to take good care of his pet, which is something I’m constantly nudging my kids to do.
These books also inspired my 6-year-old to pick up his pencil and try to draw his own bot world. Using the stickers that came with our books, he added his own details and robots. As Joey has been a very active boy who has taken to books and drawing a bit slower than his sisters, I really love seeing his growing interest in looking at books and drawing pictures now.
I love how Lynn spins a positive, engaging story about an ordinary family. These books are dedicated to her grandchildren and show not only her talents as author and illustrator, but also her love of family and children.
More about Lynn Johnston
Lynn Johnston is the creator of the widely syndicated and much beloved comic strip For Better or For Worse®. She retired from the comic strip in 2008 but continued to draw and paint funny scenes and funny characters. According to Lynn, the world needs more “funny!” Encouraged by those around her, Lynn has started a whole new project: Alottabotz!
Like For Better or For Worse, Alottabotz is about a family. Lynn says, “It’s a mom, dad, kids, dogs and ultimately they will have ordinary family situations going on. But they live in a fantasy land with amazing, odd-looking trees and houses. It’s quite different from For Better or For Worse, but I want my readers of the comic strip to know that the books come with the same fun and imagery and goofiness that I’ve always loved to work with.”
To find out more about Lynn’s newest books, drop by the website. Her books are available there, on Amazon, and in your favourite bookstores. You can also find adorable colouring pages plus two fun online games.
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