Adventure and science fiction aren’t exactly in my comfort zone, they’re genres I just occasionally dip my toe into and maybe it’s for that reason that this felt a little on the long side, but for the most part, I was entertained.

There were moments where I wondered at lead character Nicholas scarcely reacting to the increasingly bizarre situations he’s thrown into, like winding up in outerspace, creatures talking who ordinarily wouldn’t, being the target of a pursuit, etc., there was a lot of unusual stuff happening here and it barely phases this kid. I did at times crave a little more of a response from him to these strange events, but the actual intended middle-grade audience will probably have an easier time identifying with Nicholas’s ability to go with the flow than I do as an adult.

This isn’t a graphic novel, but I could see this potentially appealing to those readers with its light sprinkling of illustrations and the frequent and often quite smart laughs all throughout this adventure.

Since my reading sensibilities lean toward the emotional, the friendships were my happiest place in this book, I loved Nicholas’s bond with his gerbil Henrietta, and to my surprise, the author even had me sharing Nicholas’s fondness for Jeef, a package of ground beef, not only a uniquely memorable character, but one I cared about more than anyone else. They’re a group that I’ll look forward to catching up with in the other books in this trilogy whenever I’m in the right mood for a little something different. ( )