Order of the Night Jay flew onto our radar recently as it's been hailed as the next Diary of a Whimpy Kid. With hype like that we knew we had to take a look and see what youth, and future B-movie maniacs, are reading these days!

Synopsis: 

Frank is perhaps the most un-bear-like bear Camp Jay Bird has ever seen. Actually, he's probably the ONLY bear Camp Jay Bird has ever seen. And there are tons of bugs, he's getting picked on, and he can't seem to earn a single badge! But there's Ricky, an excitable little raccoon who shares Frank's love of Mega Bunny comics. But Ricky's friendship might be more than Frank can handle. After breaking camp rules, getting lost in the woods, and discovering ancient secrets about the long-forgotten Order of the Night Jay, how will Frank explain all this to his dad?

Why We Like It:

Order of the Night Jay is aimed at younger readers and does a great job serving up a fun detective story to keep the kids entertained while the adults watch the Perfect Turd Podcast. The artwork is very well done and the characters are amusing and diverse and even reminded us of some of our childhood favorites like Arthur.

Overall, Order of the Night Jay is a great light read for the youngsters that teaches about nature and friendship while entertaining them with a Sherlock Homes-style mystery.

If you have youngsters this one is worth getting and it's available now!

“After reading ‘Order of the Night Jay’, I hope that young readers develop an interest and appreciation for nature, and are inspired to learn and explore the world around them. But, I also hope it gets kids thinking about diversity and inclusion. One of the book’s main themes is that everyone has their own experiences and environment (family, school, etc.) that help shape who they are. We can't just make assumptions based on what we see on the outside. ‘Order of the Night Jay’ uses different animals as a simple substitution for race, religion, sex, gender, etc.”

-Jonathan Schnapp, Author