Secret Coders Vol. 6 - Monsters & Modulesby Sheena McNeilReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Publisher
Credits Grade: 9 Hopper, Eni, and Josh rescue a Turtle of Light from Flatland and use it to create a code hero to fight Dr. One-Zero's code monster. Dr. One-Zero is defeated, but not before he attacks one final time. Can Hopper help Eni after he saved her from the line of fire?This is the final volume, and I love the reveal at the end, of this being a story told by a character. That adds another layer to loving this. It's educational, it's an adventure, but it's also personal. I also like how the romance subplot is handled; it's satisfying and remains a good fit for the target age group. The adventure in Flatland is interesting, but I'm glad it wrapped up quickly. Hopper gets singled out because she's female (and thus a line and not a shape), but this allows her to move about easier than Eni (square) and Josh (triangle). This is the most farfetched aspect of the story, but I appreciate, and even like, how it's used to help deal with Dr. One-Zero at the very end. The humor surrounding the circles from Flatland is a little forced, but will probably work better for the target age-group for this comic. The coding in this volume continues to build on what we should know from previous volumes while introducing new things like modularizing code using subprograms. I like the creative code net Hopper and Eni come up with to catch dangerous balloons without popping them. And there's one special shape Hopper uses at the end that's the perfect way to handle the situation. The giant code-monsters are a fun way to use code and have a big climactic battle. The final attack from Dr. One-Zero takes the green-color theme to a whole new level. I love the cliffhanger it creates, and the act of heroism that resulted in Eni getting hit by the attack. I also like how the solution needs more than one type of input, which fits in a way with the plot-point in this story regarding layers of coding needed to run a program. All in all, this is a very satisfying conclusion to a fun series. I highly recommend it to all readers middle school and up, as I, an adult, learned a lot from it about coding while enjoying the read. Written: February 4, 2019
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