The Far-Out Five: Portal Loo Panic - Olaf Falafel's New Graphic Novel
Reading time: 2 minutes
The Far-Out Five: Portal Loo Panic is the new graphic novel from award-winning comedian, illustrator and author Olaf Falafel. It is every bit as bonkers as the title promises.
Expect portal toilets that open onto other dimensions. There is also a punk unicorn who vomits rainbows and an evil impala on the rampage. Comic-strip panels, visual gags and spot-the-difference puzzles break up the story throughout. That makes The Far-Out Five: Portal Loo Panic a strong start-of-term pick for children aged 6+. It is an easy win for reluctant or less-confident readers too.
The Far-Out Five pairs highly illustrated pages with short, achievable chapters. Each adventure moves fast. The result packs the fun, jokes and big worlds of a longer novel into a much shorter read. The series is published by Puffin Graphics, home to bestselling graphic novels including Unfairies by Huw Aaron. It is perfect for fans of Dog Man, Bunny vs Monkey and The Investigators.
Olaf is one of the UK's funniest creators for children. He won the 2025 Laugh Out Loud Book Awards Children's Fiction prize for his Trixie Pickle: Art Avenger series. He has also partnered with London Luton Airport on a bespoke children's book. It is aimed at families travelling during the summer holidays. Projects like these confirm his place among the UK's most inventive voices in children's publishing.
About The Far-Out Five: Portal Loo Panic
The Far-Out Five! A madcap team of adventurers is lost far from home. They have lost the magical wand that could turn them back into normal kids. One of them is a grumpy amateur magician.
- Spewnicorn, a punk unicorn who vomits rainbows.
- Wally, a pompous and cowardly koala.
- Tubbs, a walking bathtub.
- Bloof, a blue-footed booby.
- Glossy Jeff, a really chilled-out seal.
Together they must sail the oceans and face bizarre creatures, weird islands and mysterious tasks. The goal is to find Wally's missing wand and get back home.
Now they face an island covered in Portal Loos. These are mobile toilets that act as gateways to different interconnected dimensions, obviously! With a rampaging evil impala on the loose, they must hop from world to world. Only the navigational whelks can help them find the way out of this multi-dimensional whirlwind. Will they ever escape? Will Wally ever manage to have a wee?
Check out Penguin.co.uk here for all the links to get yourself a copy.
Publication Date: 10th September.
ISBN: 9780241730836
Paperback | £9.99 | 6+
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