The Kur Stone: The Secret Saturdays #1    by Cartoon Network Order:  USA  Can Del Rey, 2009 (2009) Softcover     Reviewed by Ricki Marking-Camuto I have never watched The Secret Saturdays on Cartoon Network, but after reading The Secret Saturdays: The Kur Stone, I think I might have to check it out. The premise is very interesting: a family of secret scientists travel the world to find cryptids (monsters), while evading bad guys. In The Kur Stone, the Saturdays and other secret scientists are being threatened by V. V. Argost to give up the Kur Stone, a stone which can call a monster who would then rule the world. While I am not sure if this whole volume was one episode or just part of one, it ends with a cliffhanger. More and more OEL manga aimed at younger kids is in cine-manga format: taking stills from the TV show and adding captions. While this is not my preferred format for manga, it does encourage younger audiences to read the story on their own, especially if they have already seen the original. The one thing I do not like about this format, though, is the narration. It is obvious from the pictures what is happening, yet there is always a blurb to explain what is going on. Transitional narration is fine and expected, but these bits during the action sequences just serve to slow the story down. Kids who enjoy The Secret Saturdays will want to read The Secret Saturdays: The Kur Stone. This type of manga is a great way to reach young reluctant or slow readers. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Kids books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews