Larklight

Book: Larklight: A Rousing Tale of Dauntless Pluck in the Farthest Reaches of Space
Author: Philip Reeve (Illustrator: David Wyatt)
Audience: Grades 4-7
In a Nutshell: Victorian space adventure (yes, really!) with pirates, giant spiders, and a touch of romance

Art Mumby, his older sister Myrtle, and their scientist father live at Larklight, their old and quirky home in orbit just beyond the moon. Art dreams of adventure, and Myrtle dreams of visiting proper society on Earth- more specifically, in London, at the grand, soon-to-be-opened Crystal Palace commissioned by Her Majesty Queen Victoria. They both soon find much more excitement than they bargained for when giant white spiders attack Larklight and capture their father. The siblings manage to escape, and soon find themselves rescued by the notorious pirate Jack Havock, who turns out to be no older than Myrtle. His crew of assorted aliens are really a good sort, but then again, when's the last time you read an adventure story with pirates who were really, truly bad? The spiders haven't given up on finding Art and Myrtle; they seem to think there's a very important key to Larklight, and they won't stop chasing the Mumby's until they have it in their creepy, spidery clutches.

The action blasts from the moon, to Venus, to Mars, to the dangerous and mysterious rings of Saturn, then back to Earth, as Art and Myrtle are separated and eventually reunited as each one does their part to stay alive and save the solar system from destruction (those spiders aren't messing around). I adore Philip Reeve's Hungry City Chronicles for teens and adults, and this is just as good, plus appropriate for the grade school crowd. The action is non-stop, the world is clever and imaginative and full of great creatures like hoverhogs and the Tentacle Twins, and the characters are vivid and likable. Myrtle got on my nerves at first, being all stereotypically proper and girly, but she kicks butt in her own way by the end. Oh, and there are plenty of pen and ink illustrations, which is very helpful in trying to visualize all the fastastical creatures and places. Don't expect space and space travel to behave exactly like they do in real life, but once you hard-core realists get over it, this book is fantastic fun. If it weren't for Reeve's pesky British citizenship, I would put this on my personal Newbery Award shortlist.