Escape from Planet Bogey is a great addition to the Pet Defender series following Attack of the Alien Dung and Beards from Outer Space. My boys (aged 4 and 9) love the slapstick humour and there are plenty of poo and snot references to keep most little ones (and some big ones) chuckling! The chapters are short and snappy which means they are perfect for reading aloud to younger children or for more confident readers to tackle on their own. It's great to see a series of books which are clearly written for young children in mind. Some adults might shy away from poo and snot references but these are the kind of things that many young kids find fascinating and tend to laugh about. When you couple this with talking cats and dogs and secret spies you've hit upon a recipe for success. A fab series from Gareth P Jones, with great illustrations from Steve May.

Mitzy the cat and Biskit the dog are Pet Defenders – perhaps some of the creatures best suited to defend the planet from alien invasion, seeing as they have inbuilt animal instincts, and live alongside some of the strangest critters out there, in mankind. But when they're thinking life is too quiet, only for a rat to come along with a tale of being enveloped in snot and taken to a different corner of the universe entirely, they're only too keen to investigate. That's especially true of Biskit, when he learns that the adventure may allow him clues to solve the disappearance of his previous partner…

This is an exuberant and wacky adventure for the under-tens, with the proviso built into that that suggests anyone older will find it a little too wacky, and imbalanced. There is a heck of a lot of snot and gunge, and the whole plot, with the kind of ending that suggests this is an inconsequential episode in an ongoing soap opera story, revolves around the moral that reality TV is bad. What I found more favour with were the beats where Mitzy and Biskit get to reflect on their relationships with the people they've lost in this life, and how human owners – and their own friendship together – are what make them stronger.

This is again the issue – that you're forced to find this heart of the book amidst what amount to literal oceans of snot. I have to admit I should have been prepared for something like that – the prior books in the series featured alien dung UFOs, and last time, mind-controlling attack beards. Just that phrase alone indicates this is very much an 'anything-goes' universe, and I may be being too sniffy in my comments. Certainly it reads brilliantly for the target audience, the first half being very heavy on dialogue, and the second on firm action. But from a fan of a prior series from this author (that featured the very enjoyable Steampunk Pirates, I was expecting something that would not exclude the adult reader quite so completely.

This author is know for his zany humour, often linked to bodily functions. As always this is a great read for young boys in particular and is part of his series about animal secret agents.A superb choice for the summer.

For once, Earth all quiet on the alien front, Commander F gives Bisket and Mitzy the day off. While Mitzy hears about strange goings on in Nothington-On-Sea, Bisket has a trip to the park with his owner, where a puppy reminds him of his former partner, Champ.

Their day off evaporates as they follow their noses to the allotments, where a Snot Snatcher is hunting earth creatures for The Wild Alien Reality Show, (think I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here meets The Hunger Games) a battle of creatures from across the universe. Will Bisket finally find his former partner?

With a cornucopia of cosmic creatures, and mounds of mucous, Escape From Planet Bogey combines slapstick humour, and a pacey plot while developing the characters. By the time this hits the bookshops, I'm going to need new copies of the first two as they’ve very nearly been read to death.

Great for fans of Guy Bass, Tom Nicoll and Barry Hutchison.