Aliens Attack! When science camp buddies Kevin, Warner, Tara, and TJ summon alien life to earth, they quickly find out that not all extraterrestrials come in peace. Can they stop an alien takeover and save the world in time to win the Invention Convention? John Kloepfer, author of the popular Zombie Chasers books, has done it again. Galaxy's Most Wanted is full of sidesplitting descriptions; a fast-paced, silly plot; a cast of diverse and endearing characters; and a slew of creepy-crawly aliens oozing off the page. With out-of-this-world black-and-white illustrations by Nick Edwards throughout, the first book in this new series is going to blast off!
Meet the Characters:
- Kevin: Science genius. Physics, biology, chemistry, you name it, Kevin can do it. He's the brains of the operation, leader of the crew.
- Warner Reed: Kevin's best friend and resident cool dude. He's the guy to see if you've got a 2 a.m. junk food craving—but you'll pay top dollar for his top secret stash.
- Tara Swift: Not only is Tara supersmart and great at building things out of next to nothing, she's also in an all-girl punk band and the best drummer in the universe. (It's true—just ask her.)
- TJ Boyd: Computer problems? He's your man. TJ's a regular computer-programming prodigy. He's not much of a talker, though. Word around the campfire is that he damaged his voice box in a botched robotics experiment.
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Brainaic Kevin and his talented young crew are facing a mission seemingly impossible: How do they expel a dangerous purple alien from the planet and still have time to win the summer camp invention convention contest? The answers to those world-shaking questions are fast-breaking; filled with twists, turns, and surprises; and too funny and complicated to repeat out loud because rereading is more fun. With its rollicking roster of diverting characters and John Koepfer's light touch, this series starters augers well for the future.
School Library Journal
05/01/2014
Gr 4–7—This is a suspenseful science-fiction adventure that will keep readers glued to the pages. The fast-paced story chronicles how Kevin, Warner, TJ, and Tara create a device to communicate with aliens to win the science-camp-invention convention. Excitement abounds when Mim, a friendly purple alien, crash-lands and becomes fast friends with the group after receiving their message. But when intergalactic bounty hunters begin touching down at science camp and hunting down Mim, things take a turn for the worst. Mim isn't really the last of his kind and is hiding on Earth; he's a world-destroying fugitive. Kevin, Warner, TJ, and Tara grow as a team and as friends throughout the story as they work to stop a terrible end for Earth. The accompanying illustrations add to the quirky nature of the story and reluctant readers will gravitate to its style. Libraries with built-in fans of Kloepfer will want to purchase, but it is also a good addition for collections in need of more science fiction or reluctant reader choices.—Ashley Prior, Lincoln Public Library, RI
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Summer camp’s getting a bad rap this year with marauding aliens—kids might want to just stay home and read about it.
Kirkus Reviews
2014-04-30
STEM camp is nerd heaven—until the aliens descend.Kevin and his friends Ward, Tara and TJ have to find a way to win the Invention Convention at Northwest Horizons science camp if for no other reason than to beat Kevin's nemesis, Alexander. Unfortunately, Alexander and his team, the Vainglorious Math Nerds, have built a working hovercraft. Kevin and his pals decide to build a galactascope, an interstellar communications device based on a comic book written by a man supposedly abducted by aliens…and it works! Responding to their summons, small, purple and furry Mim crashes into the camp lake. Can the friends keep Mim a secret until the Invention Convention? They're pretty crafty, so probably. But when more aliens descend, can they trust that all their new friend has told them is fact? Kloepfer's series kickoff is slow to start. It's only after the aliens arrive that the story shows signs of life and only toward the end that the fun actually lifts this above run-of-the-mill go-to-camp tales. The sequel, set up in the last couple pages, might well be fun from the start, since the preliminaries are now out of the way. Final art not seen.This offers a few smiles and a laugh or two while readers wait for the sequel. (Science fiction/humor. 8-11)
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