Book cover of Please Don't Tell My Parents I'm a Supervillain

Book description

Penelope Akk wants to be a superhero. She's got superhero parents. She's got the ultimate mad science power, filling her life with crazy gadgets even she doesn't understand. She has two super-powered best friends. In middle school, the line between good and evil looks clear. In real life, nothing is…

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Why read it?

3 authors picked Please Don't Tell My Parents I'm a Supervillain as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I adore superhero fiction, but it is hard to find good versions of it outside of visual mediums like comics and film. This book was one of the first superhero novels I found, and it is a lot of fun.

Penelope wants nothing more than to develop superpowers and be a hero like her parents, but instead, she develops mad scientist powers that lead to utter chaos! I squirmed as the young characters got themselves deeper and deeper into trouble, but I also laughed at this madcap superhero world filled with puns, metal-eating robots, and epic adventure. 

A small crew of super-powered middle schoolers try to do some good and end up branded as super-villains...then they find out they rather enjoy it.

It’s an amusing premise filled with wacky inventions, silly antics, and a wealth of cute and creative superpowers. But the characters are also incredibly likable, and as we grow to care for them, we see them confront difficult ethical questions in a world that’s not as black-and-white as the superheroes might have you believe.

It’s a wildly fun world mixed with a heartfelt narrative carried out by characters you’ll love. What more could you want?

From T.G.'s list on blending humor and heart.

Richard Roberts creates a fantastic YA world where villains and heroes, again, have a treaty in the city of Los Angeles.

It's a treaty about to be broken by a bunch of adorable middle schoolers who get wrongfully accused of being supervillains before deciding to roll with it. All of them possess powers from their superhero and supervillain parents, so they have better qualifications than a lot of adult villains.

It's cute, fun, and just plain enjoyable from start to end. All hail the Inscrutable Machine and its leader, Bad Penny!

From C.T.'s list on superheroes not from Marvel or DC.

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