The Fantastic Family Whipple

Someone seems intent on killing as many Whipples as possible; the murder attempts are often theatrically spectacular, but some characters suffer real, painful, near-fatal injuries. There's hand-to-hand combat with fists and assorted implements from mallets to butterfly nets. A hamster is the reluctant passenger on a rocket launched by one of the Whipple kids. The previous owner of a neighboring house died when he fell into one of the vats in his factory.

Adult characters break out the bubbly for celebrations. Sammy the ex-con chef is a heavy drinker with a gambling problem, both of which addictions lead to trouble.

Parents need to know that The Fantastic Family Whipple is a comically creepy romp with overtones of Roald Dahl. First-time author Matthew Ward concocts a catastrophe-strewn plot that pits 11-year-old Arthur Whipple, sad underachiever in a large family of record-breakers, against mysterious forces seemingly determined to bring the Whipples to a violent end. Mostly comic, over-the-top violence, such as stage productions gone terribly wrong, but there are murder attempts that cause real, painful, near-fatal injuries, such as one resulting in full body burns. There's hand-to-hand combat with fists and assorted implements from mallets to butterfly nets. The family's faithful chef is a hard-drinking ex-con with a gambling habit, which leads to trouble.