Seventh Grade Vs. The Galaxy by Joshua Levy - ESENTIAL

Seventh Grade Vs. The Galaxy by Joshua Levy. 282 pages, Carolrhoda Books (Lerner), 2019 $18 Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Jack goes to school on a spaceship called PSS 118. It orbits one of Jupiters Moons, Ganymede. Its sounds cooler than it is, in truth it’s run down and not well run either. After the ship is mysteriously attacked, Jack and his best friend Ari, and Ari’s crush Becka, discover that the ship is capable of light speed. To get away, Jack uses it and they suddenly find themselves light-years away and  in the clutches of some not so friendly alien species. Even if they do escape they need fuel for the ship but Jack, Ari, and Becka are pretty resourceful and creative.

This is a great sci-fi with a multi-faceted plot that lends itself to a continuing series. Its fast paced, interesting, creative, fun, and full of humor. I really like the time travel machine, the pet hamster, and the stunning ending (which is a cliffhanger). The characters are well written and easy to root for, with many fleshed out characters like the school kitchen robots. The cover is appealing and will yield many checkouts on that alone.

Reviewer: Stephanie MLS & Author