One day while playing in his room, Joe hears a cry for help from his parents downstairs. In an instant he's Superhero Joe and it's up to him to save the day!
Joe is a boy with superpowers--or a super imagination? Armed with his cape of confidence (a blanket) and his shield of invincibility (a garbage can lid), Joe is ready to save the day. Full color.
Superhero Joe. Weitzman, Jacqueline (author). Illustrated by Ron Barrett.
Sept. 2011. 32p. Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman, hardcover, $16.99
(9781416991571). K-Grade 2.
REVIEW. First published
September 15, 2011 (Booklist). 
Weitzman, ably assisted by Barrett, of
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (1978) fame, takes on both imagination and bravery in this warmhearted comic-book-style offering. It starts as all good superhero tales do, with someone shouting “HELP!” Joe scrambles into the kitchen to find that Dad has been attacked by “an evil black ooze” (engine oil), and Mom needs “the staff of power” (the mop) to rescue him. The problem: the mop’s in the monster-filled cellar. The solution: Superhero Joe! In an aside, Joe explains that he used to be scared of everything. But, taking a page from comic books, he found that clothes make the man, in this case his Cape of Confidence (a bath towel), Shield of Invincibility (trash-can lid), and Torch of Radiance (flashlight). Weitzman keeps things hurtling forward, while Barrett’s digitally created panels supply the primary colors and constant motion, most enjoyably when everyday objects (shirts in a dark closet, for example) take on monstrous qualities. Perfect for junior crusaders everywhere.
— Daniel Kraus
