THE BOOKWORM
“Scotty, beam me up.” Capt. James Kirk, “Star Trek” Many girls and boys are more than a little eager to beam up into that “Final Fronter” of outer space. There are several reasons for the appeal of an otherworldly realm of streaking stars and planets populated by antennaed aliens.
Science fiction offers plenty of page-turning excitement, and children adore such edge-of-your-seat adventures. Moreover, the surreal settings of science fiction spark youngsters’ imagination. They can freely ponder the possibilities of a future with untold technologies, undiscovered planets and, of course, aliens.
As children transport themselves into outer space, they can distance themselves from their earthly problems. Problems which seem insurmountable at home can be dealt with in new and exciting ways in the future.
In thus cobbling together solutions, youngsters also develop critical thinking skills. More importantly, they will feel empowered with the self-confidence to solve problems and build a better world in the future.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, BRAINS by Michelle Brown Twelve- year- old Marty Rucker’s dream of going to space camp is an expensive one. And now his father has lost his job! But then Marty sees a cast call for a high-paying cereal commercial. Will Marty pass the audition, and will the salary be enough to launch him to space camp?
LOST PLANET by Rachel Searles
A boy wakes up on an alien planet with no clue as to how he got there. He is told his name is Chase Garrety and he is now under the care of a mysterious benefactor.
His mission is to “Guide the star.” But time is running out. Will Chase fulfill his mission — and will he ever return home?
PLANET PERFECT by Amy Bearce
Earthlings are obsessed with Planet Perfect, an alien reality TV channel. No one has ever been invited to the planet. But then Meg is one of two earthlings selected to visit.
She agrees to go, hoping to learn some secrets of Planet Perfect’s ability to make its own clean energy with zero waste. But can Meg stay in the competition long enough to learn?
RED’S PLANET by Eddie Pittman
Fans of graphic novels will be more than happy to launch themselves into action-packed and humorous outer space to read about Red, a foster child stranded on a deserted planet with a group of creatures. Can Red learn to survive in this new alien world?
A ROVER’S STORY by Jasmine Warga
Resilience was built to be a Mars rover, and simply that. But then he starts to acquire human emotions from the NASA scientists to put him together.
Now he has been launched into outer space. Once on Mars, will Resilience be able to fulfill his mission — and survive?
SPACE CASE by Stuart Gibbs
Fans of Gibbs’ always action-packed mysteries with a healthy dose of humor will adore this space-based murder mystery set on the world’s first space colony on the moon.
WAR OF THE WORLDS by H.G. Wells
This classic science fiction novel has never gone out of popularity. Who can resist a story about a Martian invasion of earth. Who will win: the aliens, or the earthlings?
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