Preview: Okie Dokie Donuts (Story 1): Open for Business by Chris "Elio" Eliopoulos

Image Courtesy of Top Shelf Productions: ISBN 978-1-60309-068-1

I was able to get a preview copy of Okie Dokie Donuts (Story 1): Open for Business by Chris "Elio" Eliopoulos (@Eliohouse) published by Top Shelf Productions (www.topshelfcomix.com).  This delightfully fun book will be available this June and is available for pre-order here. It is a full-color, 48-page hardcover graphic novel.

Big Mama bakes donuts with love that her customers can't get enough of.  Whether you are looking for strawberry with banana blast or chocolate top with the sprinkle bubbles, Big Mama has the goods for you.  The book opens with a theme song that I can almost picture on a television on Saturday morning as I wake up early, fill up my bowl of cereal with Cap'n Crunch and park myself on the floor waiting to see what will happen to Big Mama this week.  With the help of her trusted employee, Henry (props for a good name choice!), Big Mama and Okie Dokie Donuts will hopefully be serving up the baked goods for future stories.

The first thing that grabs you attention with this title is Chris' unique art style and his whimsical character design.  His characters are very expressive and his art style lends itself to the slap-stick humor that permeates this book.  They capture my son's attention and really draw the eye from panel to panel.  My only complaint is that subtle touches that he places in the background are often overlooked because it is hard to look away from his characters.

In Open for Business, Big Mama is visited by Mr. Mayweather from the Great Cooks Cooking Corporation (GCCC) who has his latest and greatest invention, Mr. Baker, for Big Mama to try out.  Needless to say, the conflict that exists between Big Mama and her made with love philosophy and modern advances in kitchen technology leads to some humorous hijinks.

This book is sure to delight readers of any age and is appropriate for both young and old.  His writing is accessible to children as young as 2 or 3, and intelligent enough to be enjoyed by their parents.  Chris is no stranger to writing kids' comics (Henry also loves his book Gabba Ball) and he continues to hone his craft with this simple and humorous story that will be a regular read in our house when the print edition hits.  I can't wait to add this title to Henry's book shelf in June and I am sure that it will be a daily read for the little man.  Chris definitely left me hungering for more Okie Dokie Donuts and I hope that he includes a jelly donut for me in future volumes.  I will be careful not to squeeze though.