"Lemonade Code" by Jarod Pratt starts off seeming like a funny story about a boy and girl with rival lemonade stands, but quickly escalates into a wild adventure involving nanobots, bullies, and unexpected twists. While the diverse cast is a plus, the shift from light-hearted rivalry to a more intense plot may catch readers off guard. Despite potential for deeper character development and teamwork, the story maintains a clear divide between protagonists and antagonists. Jey Odin's illustrations add fun visuals to the narrative, but some readers may find themselves losing interest before the end.

"Lemonade Code" by Jarod Pratt is a charming and heartwarming middle-grade novel that follows the journey of protagonist Robert, a young boy determined to save his family's lemonade stand. Set against the backdrop of a small town summer, the story unfolds as Robert learns valuable lessons about entrepreneurship, friendship, and the power of community. Pratt's writing is engaging and relatable, capturing the innocence and determination of childhood with humor and warmth. With its uplifting message and endearing characters, "Lemonade Code" is a delightful read that will leave readers feeling inspired and nostalgic for their own childhood adventures.

Lemonade Code was an okay read. I don't remember why I requested this title at the time. I think the kids and teens would like reading this book.

Lemonade Code is a fun graphic novel for young readers but not at all what I expected. I enjoyed the story - two kids competing to have the top lemonade stand in the neighborhood - and the illustrations were gorgeous.

The main character, Robbie, invents this automated, super-lemonade machine but doesn't expect his new neighbor, Daphne, to have her own lemonade stand. The entire story revolves around these two kids (one a super genius and one a very sweet girl) on a mission to sell the most lemonade.

Lemonade Code is a book I'm sure my little readers will enjoy and I look forward to sharing it with them!

A wonderful middle grade graphic novel following the rivalry between the two main characters. Lemonade Code is a brilliant comfort read for anyone to enjoy

1st Line: "This is the story of how I got this black eye."

Prose (Story): Young Robbie Reynolds is an up-and-coming mad scientist genius following in the footsteps of his mother, Doctor Mama, whose own career has stalled, so she holds down a day job. In her absence, Robbie has invented an automatista robot who, solo, operates a sophisticated lemonade stand in Robbie's front yard, where it can make any flavor of lemonade your heart desires - from bagels to boogers or anything in between - and do it in record time. It's a big hit, and both Robbie's pride and head swell to huge proportions ... until the new kid across the street (a girl, no less!) named Daphne opens up her own, old-fashioned lemonade stand in her own front yard. This sets Robbie off (to be fair, it takes very little to set Robbie off), and when it seems Daphne's cuteness and sincerity and positivity make her stand more popular than Robbie's, the young mad scientist proclaims her his first arch-nemesis and seeks to take her down fast.

Don's (Review): Love the artwork on this frenetic, over-the-top graphic novel, as well as the sharp contrast between Daphne's seemingly-endless sweetness, while Robbie is about as all-over-the-place as it gets (think "needs Ritalin") - and especially love Doctor Mama, who I wish we saw more of throughout the book. I can also see where kids would enjoy this battle-of-the-sexes lemonade competition, especially as hidden things we didn't know about are revealed as the story goes on. That said, for me the book really dragged in the middle, bogged down in Robbie's mayhem and ongoing scientific descriptions and lingo, not finally picking up again until toward the end, when some final (and unexpected) battles ensue. Not a bad book, just wish the middle didn't seem stretched out and over-long (for me, Robbie even got a little annoying and boring, during this time), because once we get to the climax (and more Doctor Mama), the book rocks all over again. 2.5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

The basic premise of this book is that lemonade, ordinary lemonade is better then any other drink, no matter how odd it is, and if it is made by a mad genius. That good lemonade makes you feel so alive, and like dancing.

I can get behind that. But I think this book is not written for me, because although I appreciate the humor of Captain Underpants, and I have liked Diary of a Wimpy Kid, both of which are referred to in the description of this book, I found this book was a bit too much over the top, and a bit too complicated, and a bit too crazy and boring.

It is almost as though it went off the rails and never came back, which is fine, but it didn't work for me.

But if you like mad scientists who want to make the perfect artificial lemonade so they can take over the world, then go get this book

•Character development- 3.5☆
• Story Plot- 3☆
• Side characters- 4.5☆
• Flow of the story- 4☆
• Overall - 3.5☆

Not really my sort of thing, the art was strange and I couldn't understand the plot of the story! Funny at times though.

I rather liked this book in the beginning. I could accept the machine that can make lemonade that tastes like literally anything competing with a traditional stand. Even the whole world practically being mad scientists was acceptable. I didn't love the illustrations style, mostly because they were inconsistent, almost sloppy. In the end, though, it felt like Pratt devoted more attention to disgusting flavors than actually developing the plot. The gag lost its novelty pretty early on.

Robbie is a genius and a mad scientist. He created a robot that could make lemonade with any flavor imaginable. As soon as he opens his lemonade stand, another stand opens across the street by a new girl, Daphne. Once one of his customers tries her lemonade, everyone leaves Robbie’s stand to support Daphne. However, after Robbie’s mother tries Daphne’s lemonade, he realizes there is something in her drink that makes people become obsessed with it. Robbie has to use his coding and mad scientist skills to figure out what is happening with Daphne’s lemonade.

This story started out really strong. It’s set in the future, where people use hoverboards and robots. It was still relatable since the kids created a lemonade stand, which is such a common activity for children. The story got complicated when Robbie had to use code to figure out the secret behind the lemonade. I don’t know much about coding, but I’m sure kids who are interested in it will like this story.

This graphic novel was a little text heavy. I liked that there was a lot of text and description because sometimes graphic novels don’t have enough words. However, this may have worked better as a novel. I found some of the technical coding parts confusing and wordy. If there was simpler language or if it was explained more, I would have gotten more out of this story.

This is a great graphic novel for middle grade readers who are interested in coding.

Thank you Oni Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Kids will be lining up to read this book! Little will they realize that they are getting a great infusion of STEM topics, #ownvoices reading, and a lesson in social emotional learning.

Robbie is an inventor and his mom is a scientist. He has been inspired by her to code his very own "automatista," an AI robot that can infuse any flavor imaginable into lemonade. He sells the infusions from his front yard stand. When new neighbor Daphne moves in across the street, she is excited to meet Robbie and hear all about his lemonade creations. She likes the idea so much she opens her own lemonade stand right right across the street. When people start lining up to buy Daphne's old fashioned, stripped down, boring lemonade, Robbie sets out to discover what her secret is to attracting his customers.

This is a great middle school book perfect for kids that want to see a lot of pictures and graphics. This book can be great for kids and adults. It was fun and fast paced.book with lots of excitement over lemonade and science. The kids in the library would love to have this book. I will def. look into purchasing for the library.

Thank you to netgalley and Oni Press for the ARC of this book for an honest review.

Based on the title of the graphic novel, I knew it would have something to do with lemonade. Little did I know that the title does actually depict the content contained within. It is an interesting story with great graphics and some science thrown in, as well. If you like futuristic themes, then you will find the story of Robbie, Dr. Mama and Daphne to be interesting. I did find it to be a bit confusing at time, and I am concerned that the scientific theory may be a bit much for a middle school audience, but I could be wrong. I was overjoyed to see the diversity contained within this graphic novel. We definitely need more of this. The drawings are well developed, and the style suits the novel well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more by this author. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

I thought this was so fun! The world building was unique and creative and I loved how it came down to a Lemonade Stand of all things even in this futuristic world. Highly recommend.

This book was fine, but I didn't love it? I think folks who really like science and coding will probably like this one, but it didn't really do it for me.

This was boring and I did not enjoy at all. I was hoping for something enjoyable and fun. Instead I was left wanting more. The artwork was beautiful but it did not make up for the lack of an interesting storyline.

A colorful graphic novel about the simplicity of lemonade. No, really, it's about keeping things simple despite being a super genius capable of making crazy flavors of lemonade. A bit technical for me at points but a fun read for kids who love science and graphic novels.

Robbie, mad scientist and super, super genius, has decided to open a lemonade stand. It’s state of the art, served at the perfect temperature, and comes in any flavor you can dream up. He’s making a killing with it. But then, Daphne, a new neighbor girl, opens up a very basic lemonade stand across the street and actually starts stealing his business! Of course, this means war. And a lemonade stand war involving a mad scientist is sure to get pretty epically crazy.

This was a very fun new twist on the ol’ kid mad scientist thing. It actually gets pretty thick in the scientifically theoretical realm deep in the plot, but even readers who can’t follow what in the world Robbie is talking about (which half the time is the case with all mad scientists, right?) you can still figure out the main gist of what is going on. I really like Robbie’s Doctor Mama who is also a mad scientist, but who can still lay down the law and set little mad scientists straight. Definitely purchasing this for my school. I know several students who will love this seriously sciency (and musical) lemonade stand battle.

Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. Robbie gets two black eyes (the first from a bully who is eventually scared off, and the second from Daphne and his mom says he totally deserved it for the way he treated her). Nanotech threatens to take over the world…but things eventually get resolved peacefully.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Welcome Back!

It’s almost Christmas and I am still spending a ton of time reading. As we get closer and closer to the holiday the work load on my plate for school, work, etc… get a bit smaller and I feel like I can spend so much more time reading. I also feel like there are so many books from this year, I that I bought, or earmarked to read because I was so excited about them but time was not on my side and now I have more free time and I am reading tons and tons of books. (I counted it up the other day and currently, this will be my best reading month in a long time and perhaps all year). I was hopeful at the start of the month that I might somehow be able to hit my Goodreads goal still but that is not going to happen (not this year but it will next year)! So in the meantime I am just really enjoying reading a bunch of books I did not have time for earlier in the year! Recently, I wanted to read a new graphic novel or manga, I wanted something I could pick up and finish in one day. So I went over to my Netgalley and noticed I had this one on my shelf!

SPOILERS AHEAD

Robbie is a super super genius and he has made a lemonade machine that can make any flavor lemonade any one asks for. This is going great until a new neighbor arrives one day and their daughter sets up an old fashioned lemonade stand. Soon Robbie and this new girl become nemesis as her lemonade stand becomes popular and his loses business. From there Robbie’s problems only mount when his mom loses her job! Can Robbie get his lemonade stand profitable again or will this new rivalry take over this super super geniuses time.

I really enjoyed my time with this graphic novel. The story was a fun adventure of lemonade stands, the future, and business rivalry. I particularly enjoyed the colors and illustrations in this graphic novel, the colors were all bright and seemed to pop off the page in each panel. I am really glad I finally got an opportunity to pick this graphic novel up and I look forward to whatever might come next from this author!

Goodreads Rating: 4 Stars

**Thank you so much to the publisher for the Netgalley E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After reading the blurb, I was excited to give this one a read...but to say it wasn't anything like I expected would be an understatement.

Robbie is a super-amazing, over-the-top genius. But he has a problem. His secret project has run out of funds. So, to help out, he creates a very special lemonade stand, where there isn't a flavor that his automatista can't create. It's an amazing stand, and it catches even more attention...and money...than he could have hoped for. When a cute girl opens a very simple lemonade stand across the street, he declares war, especially when she starts winning over customers with her very simple recipe.

It took me a few pages to fall into the flow on this tale. The science fiction is heavy, and Robbie is more of a mad scientist than a kid. So, when this one starts out with a blast into high-tech, a genius Dr. Mama, and a boy, who is more than just a little energetic about inventions...it threw me for a bit. But after I got a handle on the direction this book takes, things flowed much better. Just don't pick up this one and expect any sort of normality because it's not there.

This tale is fast-paced and races from one scene into the next. Robbie is all over the place, but it fits his character well, considering his mind must be one busy space. When he sees competition pop-up across the street, it's understandable that he'd be a bit protective and not overly friendly. Unfortunately, Robbie's head is so much in his own realm that he goes beyond normal rudeness, and despite the girl's positive nature, is simply a big, selfish jerk, who only shows kindness to his mother. It makes him very hard to like even when he does help 'save the world' at the end. He starts as a brat and ends as one, too. The girl is cute, though, and the dog definitely earns bonus points..

As to the illustrations, these are bright, bold and do bring the story to life. The scenes are well placed and allow the visual story to build with the written text. Like the tale itself, these sometimes were on the frantic end...but then, this one doesn't have a calm plot. The text blocks on the illustrations, unfortunately, hit the heavy side. I found myself skipping more than just a couple of them. I'm not sure the intended audience will take the time to read all of them, either. Plus, there are more than a couple heavier, scientific terms, which will be beyond what many of this age group can understand. However, I do appreciate how the author filtered these in with a fun plot. They just will go over some readers' heads.

All in all, this is an imagination packed read, which races through an original and exciting adventure. There are more than a few unexpected twists, and lemonade takes on an entirely new meaning after this book is done. Just don't pick it up with the expectation that it will have anything to do with how usual kids might stage a lemonade stand war.