Avery Writes About The Roar

Hey-ho, reader guys, it's Carl and we've got a review of The Roar by Emma Clayton from our new friend Avery. Let's hear it, Avery:

The Roar is a really great book. I finished reading it about two days ago, and it led me to think... What if the world is just two steps away from The Wall and the YTF? I love a book that makes me consider what happens in the real world. This book I would recommend to anyone who wants a book that makes you wonder... Anyway, even without the afterthought, The Roar has a great plot line, lifelike characters, and a realistic point of view. This is a great sci fi book for anyone interested.

Thanks, Avery! The Roar has generated more discussion lately than just about any other book. And with good reason! It's got a slam-bang good plot with vivid setting and characters but also gives you a lot to think about. Not many books do that! If you guys want to see what I and other guys have said about this terrific book, click on the "The Roar" label under this post. And if you live in the Charlotte area, Avery, come in to the Imaginon library and claim your free book.

More Good Audiobooks For Guys

Audiobooks are great!! If you're going to be a car for a long time or if you have some time to kill, nothing's better than books on CD. I took a weekend trip with the family to the North Caorlina Museum of Natural Sciences, an extremely cool place, and, since it's 3 hours and more from here to Raleigh, we took a couple of audiobooks with us. We enjoyed them a lot.

The first was The 39 Clues: The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis, read by David Pittu. In this one, the third in the 39 Clues series, Dan and Amy Cahill have to go to Tokyo and Korea to find the third Clue that will make them the richest and most pwerful people on earth. Along the way they have to dodge yakusa (deadly Japanese gangsters), ninja throwing stars, oncoming subway trains, and more! This audiobook really kept us glued to our seats. The reader makes the characters come alive (except he couldn't get a good voice for Nellie Gomez) and also makes the story move right along. Really good.

The other one was The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, read by David Hyde-Pierce. Oh, man, did we enjoy this one!! It's FUNNY, with LOTS of unbelievalbe puns and there's lots of fantasy and adventure. Young Milo is a boy who's bored all the time until a mysterious blue box appears in his room along a message telling him how to use the Phantom Tollbooth. Milo hops into the car that comes with it, goes through the tollbooth and finds---well, what he finds is beyond belief!! You've got to either get the book or this audiobook! And David Hyde-Pierce reads this book perfectly, finding all the humor and adventure and making you feel a part of it. This audiobook was so good that I sat in my garage listening to the last disc so I could hear the end!

So go get these two and happy listening! And click on the "audiobooks" label under this post to find out about more.

Carl

Boys' Book and Movie Days

Yes, guys, it's the CARLMAN and there's a fun program coming up in February, the Boys' Movie and Book Club. We'll show a movie, hand out books to check out after the movie, and meet three weeks later to have a book club. The book for February will be N.E.R.D.S. by Michael Buckley. It's a terrifically fun book and one of my favorites of 2009 (see my original review here) Since the book is about nerds, I thought we'd show The Absent-Minded Professor, that oldy-goldy movie about a nerdy science professor. Here's the schedule:

Saturday, February 6 at 3 pm at Imaginon in The Round--watch The Absent-Minded Professor and check out a copy of N.E.R.D.S. afterward.

Saturday, February 27 at 3 pm at Imaginon in The Round--N.E.R.D.S. book club.

Feel free to come to the movie, but, if you do, we expect to see you at the book club too! If you've ever come to our boys' book club, you'll know that we have a good time as well as good discussion. So call the Imaginon library at 704-416-4630 to register or if you need more info. Hope to see you there!

We can't stress it enough, this book is awesome

Hey there guys, Master Jedi Zack here again. I know Bill and Carl have both talked about this book, so I'm only going to say that I just reread Lost Worlds and it is AWESOME! Be sure and pick it up, it is a great read.

Second, I wanted to let everyone know that the Bruner's stopped by the Matthew's Branch Library and told me that I had to read the first Dragon Slayer's Academy book. So that is what I'm going to do, and you should too.

That is all for now, I need to get back to making sure that Evil Sithy over there behaves.

Michael Writes Again! And So Does StableGranny

Hey, reader guys, it's Carl with another great review from our good friend Michael:

Jumpman, Rule #1
Don't Touch Anything
by James Valentine
When Theodore Pine Four TimeJumps from Fifteen Billion and Seventy Three to Mil 3 (the present), he meets two kids of that time, Jules Santorini and Geneveive Corrigan, and the adventure is endless. They visit the future, the dinosaur age, and they get chased by Neanderthals! It's non-stop action, humor, and suspense as Jules, Gen, and Theo TimeJump again and again. But suddenly, Theo gets a cold, and parts of his body are disappearing and reappearing everywhere! Theo says that he can't go back to his time or else he'll wipe everybody out! What will Jules and Gen do? Will Theo survive? Find out in this constant page turner of a book. Jumpman Rule #2: Don't Even Think About is also available.

Thanks, Michael! The library has both these books, so come and take a look, guys. We also have a good comment form our friend StableGranny. She and I have emailed back and forth and she seems very cool. Especially since she loves horses. She commented on the cover for The Red Pyramid; let's hear what she has to say:

WOW, that is a cool cover. I might just become a boy book reader. Ha! I do read boy books trying to find ones my grandson Kane will read. If I talk about them then he wants to read them.

Yes, that is an extremely cool cover. Keep reading our blog if you want to find more good guy books. Or go to our Links on the left-hand side of the page. I know I've talked about this recently, but it's worth saying again. We've got lots of links to sites that talk about books boys will love. We also have a link to all the books that we and our reader guys have reviewed. It covers fiction (chapter books), graphic novels, paperback series, nofiction, and others. I've listed the title of each book, the author, and the date of the original review. (you can go to the Blog Archives on the left-hand side of the page, click on the triangle next to the year, and the months will drop down. Click on the trianlge next to a month and the posts for that month will drop down. You can find reviews that way) I need to update that list, though. I need to update it BADLY! Wow, I just looked at it and saw the date of the last book in the list. Wow! I've been slack! Well, I know what I'll be doing this week!

The Red Pyramid Cover!

Behold, all you reader guys, the cover of the latest book from the mighty Rick Riordan! It's The Red Pyramid, the first in the Kane Chronicles. This book brings the ancient Egyptian immortals into the modern world, just as the Percy Jackson books did for the Greek myths. Doesn't this look cool? The book comes out on 5-24-10. CAN'T WAIT!!

Carl

If you want to learn more and read the first few paragraphs, click on this link.

Charlie Checks In!

Hey, all you reader guys, it's Carl and I'm very jazzed to see so many guys writing to us! We have a comment from our new freind Charlie. He's a high-schooler who want to tell us about some of the books he liked:

Cool blog! I think it's great you're trying to get boys interested in reading, but I wish more boys were brave enough to explore genres other than action/adventure/comics. There are so many fantastic books and authors out there if you're willing to give it a try. A few suggestions: A Hole in the World by Sid Hite, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, 13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen, edited by James Howe. Also check out authors like David Almond, Gary Soto and Jerry Spinelli, etc. I'm in high school now, but I loved these when I was 9-12 years old.

Thanks, Charlie! Actually, some of our guys have explored some other books. Bill, Zack, and I did a joint post on Jerry Spinelli's great book Maniac Magee a couple of years ago. (if you want to see that post or read about other Jerry Spinelli books, click on the Labels under this post) I remember reading The Outsiders and liking it. Charlie's absolutely right, guys--there are a lot of fantastic books out there and they are worth looking for. I'm going to read a non-action book sometime this winter called Heart of a Shepherd. I've heard a lot of good things about it and I'll let you know how I like it. Unless one of you beats me to it!

Michael Writes Again!

Our good friend Michael, who sent us so many fantastic reviews over the holiday break, is back with a new one! Here it is:

The Original Choose Your Own Adventure, book 160
The Computer Takeover
by Edward Packard
It's the mid 21st century. You are a computers genius and work with different computers all over the world. One day you get a call from your friend Maria on the moon. She tells you that the computer that helps them run the moon, Acorn, is doing something extra. Late at night, Acorn is having the robots carry out an extra project. You think it's no big deal. Acorn did stuff like that sometimes. Once it made a laser shield around the moon for better protection against meteors. But then Maria tells you that it's not telling them what it is. That's a problem. Now you must make a choice. Do you go to the moon and deal with Acorn yourself? Do you go to the creator of Acorn, a frail, old scientist incapable of much travel, and who needs frequent naps? The choice is up to you. I personally chose to visit the scientist, and then I... well, I'm not telling you. You'll just have to read it for yourself. There are many other Choose Your Own Adventure books. The original series, the new series, and the younger kids series. So pick one up today!


Thanks, Michael! Your reviews are always great. The library has several of these Choose Your Own Adventure books--come on in and take a look.


Today is January 12. Do you know what that means? ONE MORE MONTH UNTIL THE LIGHTNING THIEF MOVIE!!! Woo-hooooo!! Are you guys as excited as I am?? Who's going to see it right away? Who's going to see it the first day? Who's going to Master Jedi Zack's Camp Half Blood program at the Matthews library? (see his post of 1-08 to find out more) One. More. Month!! Can't wait!!

Carl

Toby Writes About The Roar

When I got in today, after spending the weekend settling an argument between Darth Vader and Mace Windu (those two never get along), I found a really great comment from our new friend Toby. He wrote about a really terrific book, The Roar by Emma Clayton. It's an amazing book that I reviewed way back last April. (check out my original review here) Let's hear what Toby has to say:

this book was wikid

i dont like books that muuch but i couldent put it down i really want there to be another book as it was so good and as she left the story at the end sayin how the children remember the dream

she has to make another one.

Thanks, Toby!! Wasn't that a fantastic book? I couldn't put it down either. And, yes, there is supposed to be another one! The tentative title is The Whisper and she's working on it now. I don't know when it will come out but I will watching and waiting for it!

Toby, you made my day!! I just LOVE hearing from guys about the books they like. Especially if you're a guy who doesn't like books that much. Maybe our blog can help you find more. There are some really great links about good reads on the left-hand side of this blog. Start with the Guys Read link at the top of the Links section. Good luck and let us hear from you again!

Carl

PS--if you want another book you can't put down, let me recommend The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. I know there's a movie of it coming out soon, but this one is the best!!!

Camp Half-Blood

Hello guys in the land-o-blog, Master Jedi Zack here again with some exciting news. At the Matthews Branch library (where I work), my Padawan Rebecca and I are going to hold a program in honor of the upcoming movie version of everyone's favorite book, The Lightning Thief.

On Thursday February 11 at 6:30, we will have trivia, games, Greek style snacks and even some prizes. In case you don't know, this is the day before the movie comes out.

Registration is currently open and you can register online by clicking on this link, come into the library or give us a call. I hope to see everyone there, it is going to be electric! Get it, electric? Just like lightning? Oh well, I tried.

The First Terrific Book of 2010 Is--

--In Too Deep by Jude Watson, the sixth of The 39 Clues books. Wow! What a great read! All these book have been terrific and this one is no exception. In this one, Dan and Amy Cahill are in Australia, searching for the latest Clue that could make them (or any of their unscrupulous family) the richest and most powerful people on earth. Their parents, who died in a fire, had been to Australia long ago to find a Clue and the kids go there to find what their mother and father may have learned. Along the way they encounter the most poisonous snake on earth, muscle-bound cousins who want revenge, the most evil and deadly of all their relatives, and the possibility of being thrown to the sharks. Lots of action here! And this book offers a tremendous emotional punch too. Amy and Dan learn something about her parents' death that changes them and the reason they pursue the Clues. You gotta read these books! Each one in The 39 Clues gets better and better.

Carl

(if you want to learn more about these books or Jude Watson, click on those words under this post)

Michael Claims His Prize! And Two Mysteries

Hey, gang, it's the CARLMAN with the first big story of the year. Our friend and incredible reviewer Michael came here to the Imaginon library last night to claim his special prize package for sending in so many good reviews. I wasn't here, unfortunately, but my coworker Marvelous Mona took a picture:

He's wearing one of his prizes, a t-shirt that says "Joust Read." Good work, Michael! We look forward to hearing from you again!

(PS to Augustin--since you sent in so many reviews at the last minute, I'll give you a prize package too!)

And now for a couple of good books. Both are mysteries. The first is The Baker Street Irregulars: In Search of Watson by Tracy Mack and Michael Citrin. Sherlock Holmes sometimes used a group of street kids to help him track down criminals or look for clues. He called them The Baker Street Irregulars. This series takes those kids and makes up new adventures. In this book, the third in the series, a famous archaeologist has been murdered and the famous detective calls on the kids for help. In the middle of the case, however, Dr. Watson disappears! Sherlock Holmes REALLY needs their help now! I'm a big Sherlock Holmes fan and I enjoyed this one. The mysteries pile up and the story moves along.

The second is Ziggy and the Black Dinosaurs: The Buried Bones Mystery by Sharon M. Draper. Rico and his friends Ziggy, Rashawn, and Jerome find a mystery right away. Someone has cut down basketball goals in the neighborhood playground. Who'd do such a thing? They decide to build a clubhouse in Ziggy's backyard and form a club for the summer--but they also find a box of bones buried in Ziggy's back yard! And who's that old man who comes around at night? And what's the talk about an old cemetery in Ziggy's backyard? I enjoyed this one too. I'd recommend it to our younger reader guys--if you've read the A to Z Mysteries, you'd like this.

And if want to learn about more good mysteries, click on the word "mysteries" under this post.

Happy reading! Keep writing to us!

Another Review From Michael!

Wow! Is this guy good! No sooner had I posted about Michael's receiving his prizes then I get another review from him. Let's see it:

Choose Your Own Adventure miniseries The Golden Path, book 1
Into the Hollow Earth
by Anson Montgomery
You are a student at a boarding school. When you and your friends and you go to your house, you find your dog dead, and your neighbor in your garage chanting something strange. Then you find the e-mail. Something has happened to your parents. The e-mail says to go one place, but when you call their attorney, he says to come to New York. Which will you choose? Your choice will effect the entire story, and it may decide your death or your survival. As you flip through the pages of this book, you will encounter many surprises, but will your journey end here, or will it continue in the next book, Burned By the Inner Sun? Only one way to find out. I have read this book and was accepted into the next book, so we'll have to see what happens. The Golden Path is not the only way to read Choose Your Own Adventure. Their are hundreds of original and new Choose Your Own Adventure books, with cyber hackers, globe-trotting, and time travel, but the ending can only be decided by you.

Thanks, Michael! Keep up the outstading work. Your reviews are first-rate and make me want to read these books. How about all you in blogland? Does he make you want to find them?

Carl

All Hail the King--of Guy Reading!

That would be, of course, none other than the great Jon Scieszka, author of The Time Warp Trio series, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, and lots of others. A lot of bloggers are singing his praises today because he's finishing a two-year term as National Ambassador of Children's Literature and we want to add to the chorus. But on top of that, we want to salute him as the King of Guy Reading. Not only has he been a terrific author, not only has he been the national Ambassador of Children's Literature, but he has been for many years the # 1 advocate of Guy Reading. He has tirelessly proclaimed that Reading For Guys Is Cool. He has written many books guys love, criss-crossed the country promoting Guy Reading, and established the best reading website for guys there is. (check it out on the Links section on the left-hand side of the page--it's at the top!) Many thanks to you, Mr. S! Long may you wear the crown!



My favorite JS book? Would have to Knuckleheads, his autobiography. Funny, funny, funny and very real. He and the CARLMAN grew up in the same era, so I can especially relate. (especially with the chapter that talks about the time he ordered some plastic soldiers, ships, and tanks through the mail--the EXACT SAME THING happened to me!) But all guys can relate to his story--and laugh with it! See my original review here.

The CARLMAN

Fantastic--Yet MORE Reviews!

Wow! Very impressive! When I, the CARLMAN, got back from the long New Year's weekend, I found another messenger droid from Yoda Claws (he's gone back to the ice planet Hoth after the holidays) and found that three of you reader guys have sent six reviews over the weekend. Well done! Our first is from that prolific reviewer Michael:

Bloodhounds, Inc., book 1
The Ghost of KRZY
by Bill Myers
When brother and sister detective team Sean and Misty Hunter see strange lights coming from their father's radio station late at night, they are determined to find out what it is. A few nights later, they stake out at the radio station, and suddenly, all the electronics turn on by themselves! They see something strange moving inside of them, going from one electronic to the next. Sean and Misty know what their dad has told them about not coming back to Earth once you die, but could this really be... a ghost?! Great action; at one point, Sean and Misty are driving an out-of-control motorcycle, and the side-coach pops off with Misty in it! Great story, funny. And an excellent life lesson, as Sean and Misty find the truth about the mysterious character, which isn't a ghost, and they realize how foolish they were thinking that it really was a ghost. Sean, Misty, and this strange character star in many other books in the Bloodhounds, Inc. series!

Thanks, Michael! You've told us about some great-sounding series and I'd love to read some of them. The next reviews are from Augustin, who wrote in at the beginning:

Title: Fantastic Mr Fox Author: Roald Dahl

What its about: Three farmers, named Boggis,Bunce, and Bean. Boggis was enourmously fat. He was a chicken famer and every day ate three boiled chickens smothered with dumplings for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Bunce, a duck and goose farmer. He was very short and squat. His food was goose livers and doughnuts. This diet gave him a bad stomache ache and a terrible temper. Bean was skinny as a string bean and a turkey and apple farmer. He never ate any food but drank gallons and gallons of strong apple cider which he made. Mr Fox was a fox with a wife and four children. He always got his food from Boggis, Bunce and Bean's farms. Seeing as how they didn't take too kindly to having all their good food taken right out from under their noses they stayed waiting for him one night and when he came out they all tried to shoot at him. Only Mr Fox was quite quick and only got his tail shot off. The three very miserly farmers kept after him until all the animals around were starving. Even the weasel could not slip past them seeing as how the beastly farmers were spending night and day around the hole where all the animals went to get food. Then Mr Fox had a brain wave. What if he got some of his friends to help him dig a tunnel under the personal store rooms of the three farmers. His idea worked! soon he had brought back plenty of food for all the animals in the settlement. They had a grand banquet and they all toasted Mr Fox because he was the one who had masterminded the whole idea of tunneling. Boggis, Bunce, and Bean stayed there always saying "he is probably going to come out any minute." Instead they were getting all their produce taken out from under their noses while they were watching a hole.

Title: The Giraffe the Pelly and MeAuthor: Roald Dahl

What it's about: It's about a little boy who lived not far away from an old sweets store. He had always dreamed of making it into a grand candy store. One day he noticed that it was for sale. a couple of weeks later he saw that someone had bought it. All the sudden he noticed a bath tub a piano and a lot of other rubble fly out of the windows. When the little boy asked if anybody was home there was no answer. The next day he saw painted on the window The ladderless window cleaning company. Then a giraffes head popped out of the window. After that a peilican opened another window. Then a monkey jumped out. While all this was happening a chauffeur got out of a huge car. He said the Duke wanted them to wash his windows. After arriving and washing some of his windows they saw a robber. After catching him they were rewarded by being able to stay forever in the Dukes Palace. The little boy got to get his candy store.

Name of book: The Magic FingerAuthor: Roald Dahl

What it's about: This book is about a girl who posessed a special power that she called the magic finger. Her neighbrs were very big fans of hunting and the girl could not stand that they hunted so much. One day she put the magic finger on the whole family! The next morning when her neighbors woke up they found that they had shrunk to the size of a robin and instead of their arms they had grown wings!! You can imagine their surprise when they found this out! The father then started to build a nest and try to find food for his family.. At one point the family noticed that there were four ducks that they had tried to shoot at the day before, had grown to people size and were moving into their house! That night the family went to sleep in their new home, a nest of sticks. In the morning the mother and father awoke to see that the ducks were pointing the familys' guns up at them. The father begged the ducks not to shoot especially at his children. The ducks reminded him that he and his sons had shot their children two days before. Then the father promised that he and his children would never go hunting again. The ducks then told him to fly down with his family. As he did everything went black and the next thing he knew he was standing next to his family in his front yard with everything back to normal. He then went and got his guns and broke them into tiny bits. He never shot another thing in his enitire life. Neither did his sons.

Title: Mr. Blue Jeans the story of Levi Strauss Author: Maryann N. Weidt

What its about: The story of a Jewish boy who went to the States to try and earn a living for his mother , sisters and himself. He started out as a peddlar and when he was in the mountains a miner asked him if he could make him a pair of pants that would hold up to the wear and tear of mining work. That night Levi theJewish boy made the miner a pair of pants out of some denim instead of canvas as usual. By accident when he had loaded up he had gotten the wrong material. After he made the pair of pants and the miner liked them the miner told all his friends to get that type of pants. Years later Levi was one of the most respected men around. Even today we use Levis Jeans.

Thanks, Augustin! I read Fantastic Mr. Fox several years ago and liked it. Have you seen the movie? Did you like it? We'd love to hear what you thought of it. I'm also glad you liked the nofiction book. I've always said that nonfiction is not boring and am glad when other reader guys think so too.

Finally, we have a review of a Lemony Snicket book from our new friend PayPay:

Title:A Series of Unfortunate Events Book 4:The Miserable Mill. Author:Lemony Snicket.

When the unlucky Baudelaires are forced to move out out of their previous foster home in book 3 they are sent to a dark and eerie town called Paltryville where they will live at the Lucky Smells Lumbermill.But they didn't know they would be working there! They are faced against a terrible foreman a nasty guardian and a suspicious eye doctor.This is a wonderfully tragic tale and I suggest it for kids over the age of 8.

Thanks, PayPay! Don't forget to come to the Imaginon, Matthews, or Mint Hill libraries and get a free book. I read this one too and enjoyed it, although, I hate to say, I'm not a huge fan of the S of U E books. Maybe it's just me, but I got tired of them after a couple. Master Jedi Zack likes them a lot. How about you, Darth Bill?

Well, this has been a lot of fun, guys! PLEASE keep writing in!! We and your brother reader guys always want to hear about good reads. And we'll have more events through the year. Stay tuned!

Bond is Back, Space Cadet Adventures and I'm Batman!!!!

Hi all and welcome to 2010!!!! Well to get the year started right I've got a couple reviews of books and comics that I have recently read. So, here we go:

Double or Die: A James Bond Adventure by Charlie Higson - Wow, 13 year-old James Bond is back in this great book that packs one heck of a punch!!!!! This adventure starts with the kidnapping of one of Professor Fairburn, who teaches at Eton, where James goes to school. The kidnappers are two cutthroat brothers; one rather normal looking guy named Wolfgang, the other Ludwig, who looks like a skeleton with rotting teeth. They are employed by a mysterious man whose identity when revealed will shock the reader. It seems that this professor and another colleague where/are working on something that could quite literally change the world overnight. After Professor Fairburn's disappearance, one of James' friends at Eton receives a letter that gives clues as to what has happened to him, what he was working on, and where he is now located. The clock is ticking and James must figure out what is going on quickly or very bad things will happen. One thing I really liked was the reappearance of Red Kelly (if you have read the first Young Bond Book Silverfin, you will be familiar with this roguish friend of James). Bond is back and better than ever!!!!!!!

I hardly ever need an excuse to put something about Bond on the blog and since we just talked about "Double or Die," check out this alligator stunt from the Bond flick "Live and Let Die."




Pretty Cool, right???!!!!!!!


Batman The Brave and The Bold - The Fearsome Fangs Strike Again by J. Torries and Carlo Barberi - This is a really cool comic that the library is considering adding to it's collection in the near future. Right now, we just happen to have a few issues. In this series, Batman teams up with different superheroes each month. In this issue he teams up with one of my favorite superheroes, Green Arrow (Master of the Bow and Arrow). Talk about action-packed, the issue starts with a brief apperance by The Huntress with Batman helping her take on the supervillian, Sports Master, and his henchmen.

The Huntress -->

After The Huntress and Batman have wrapped up business with The Sports Master and Crew, Batman and Green Arrow find themselves investigating a robber of a very powerful weapon by a Supervillain Team known as The Fearsome Fangs (made up of The Fox, The Shark and The Vulture) and a band of Ninjas known as The Shadow Clan.


<-- The Fearsome Fangs

This features superheroes doing what they do best against nasty villains doing what they do best. Starts off smoking and never comes off the gas petal. So either give it a try at your local Comics Shop (in Charlotte I would recommend Heroes Aren't Hard To Find) or check out the couple of issues we have here at ImaginOn. Great Stuff!!!!!!!



Tom Corbett, Space Cadet: Service Call by Bill Spangler and John DeCosta - This is the first issue of a space-oriented series featuring Space Cadets Tom Corbett (Leader), Astro, and Roger serving aboard the spaceship Polaris. The story starts out with a lone Life-Pod zooming through space; it is carrying what appears to be the only survivor of the Space Station Nia (located near Jupiter). Soon afterward Tom and his fellow Cadets make a stop at a nearby Rescue Station for needed supplies and general inspection. What should be a boring inspection and pickup turns into a situation of life or death for the Cadets. How are these two events tied together and how do our Cadets fair in this exciting first issue? Well, there are two ways you can find out. You can either register for our January 21, 2010 Comics Camp here at ImaginOn (for 8 - 12 year olds at 704-416-4630) and possibly win an issue or check out your local Comic Book Store (again in Charlotte the place to go is Heroes Aren't Hard To Find). The artist for this book is one of our very own Comics Camp Instructors John DaCosta. So if you win an issue at the Comics Camp or buy an issue and bring it with you, he can sign it for you!!!! How cool is that?????? This is an excellent comic that I highly recommend!!!!!

Well until we meet again on that dusty trail Cowpokes, here's looking at ya,

Bill