- Graphic Novels
- Ages 7–10
- Comedy
Donut Squad: Make a Mess!
Book 2 of 3 in Donut SquadView the full series
A second helping of anarchic donut-versus-bagel comedy, with camping, interactive-style antics and meta comic-book chaos. It is extremely friendly to children who want energy, colour and jokes over conventional prose.
- Best for7–10
- FormatGraphic
- Length208 pp
- Read aloud~1 hr40 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Comedic
- Conversational
- Second person
Tone
- Funny
- Silly
- Absurdist
- Irreverent
- Exciting
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
The bagels are lying low, which should give the Donut Squad a chance to relax. Naturally, that means more malarkey. The donuts head off camping, Anxiety Donut finds himself in an adventure where what happens next is up to the reader, and Li'l Timmy learns the Meaning of Life, which is probably more complicated than anyone expected from a donut comic. But the bagels are not finished: their latest scheme threatens to kick the Donut Squad out of their own book. This second volume leans into the series' biggest strengths: fast gags, meta-comic play, food-based absurdity and a large cast of ridiculous personalities. Neill Cameron's visual humour and comic timing make it highly accessible for readers who like graphic novels, Phoenix-style silliness and stories that behave as though the rules can be bent for the sake of a better joke.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 7–10
- Read aloud · 6–9
- Independent · 7–10
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Works well for
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
2 / 5 · Better outside bedtime
Sensitive-child
4 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Joke dense comics
- Reluctant readers
- Meta humour
- Phoenix comic fans
- Silly food humour
Avoid if
- Wants emotional depth
- Prefers realistic stories
- Dislikes absurd humour
- Wants linear plot
Particularly good for children who are…
- Reluctant reader
- Struggling with reading
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A fast, funny action-comic series — a reluctant-reader pleaser and classroom-library staple.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific delight is the camping bit — bagels lying low, the donuts heading out on a trip, Anxiety Donut getting his own choose-your-path adventure, Li'l Timmy learning the Meaning of Life, the bagels eventually trying to kick the Squad out of their own book. The second Donut Squad at its most meta.
- Trickery and cleverness
- Having a nemesis
- Adventure and freedom
- Revenge on adults
Why parents love it
The Donut Squad sequel — meta-comic play and food-based absurdity at full strength, rules bent for the sake of the joke. Highly accessible Phoenix-style silliness for reluctant graphic-novel readers.
- Shared humour
- Quick to read
In the series
Donut Squad.
3 books · open the series →
About the author & illustrator
Neill Cameron.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
Books that share themes and topics with this one.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
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- Waterstones ↗
- Amazon UK ↗
- Hive ↗
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