Things you’ll learn from this brilliantly illustrated graphic adventure: what dopamine is and how it makes you addicted to your phone; what a virus does, and how cytokines and white blood cells can see them off; how our ears work. Plus, if you didn’t know it before, you’ll also learn that Jim Smith is one of the most consistently clever, funny and inventive writers around.
In this their latest outing, Graham Knee, aka Genius Kid, is determined to go viral, despite down to earth advice from his friend, Flea. No matter how gloriously ridiculous his ambitions – or the interactions with the properly viral creators of Dooby’s Random Factoids™ - we nonetheless pick up a great deal of facts and information, and enjoy some excellent jokes and gags along the way. The cartoon approach makes this super accessible, and it will appeal to a broad range of readers. Sheer genius!
Genius Kid is back with his best friend and neighbour Flea to tackle the humongous subject of . . . VIRUSES!
From the techy kind of virus that shut down computer mainframes and brings total panic To the going viral global fame type of virus (that also creates total panic) To the snotty variety of virus which creates a different sort of Must-go-to-bed now sort of panic . . .
Luckily GK and Flea are here to explain everything and nothing at all in the way that only they can! Here's hoping that they go viral too . . .
Jim Smith is The most boringly-named graphic novelist in the world. That's why he calls himself Waldo Pancake.
When he was a kid, Jim collected coke cans. Now he's grown up, he draws on paper cups and sugar sachets for a coffee shop chain called Puccino's. He also writes the Barry Loser kids' books which have sold over 850,000 copies and won him the Roald Dahl Funny Prize and the Laugh Out Loud Book Award. In his spare time, Jim makes little birds out of bits and pieces he finds in skips.
After graduating with a first class degree in advertising, graphic design and illustration in 1997, Jim Smith was spotted by the owner of a small coffee shop chain and brought in to fill the walls of their flagship store with his paintings. It was a three month contract; over twenty years years later, Jim is head of design at Puccino's Worldwide Ltd, now an international coffee shop franchise with stores across the world.
