Leo Gray and the Lunar Eclipse

Get this book! The characters are relatable. The world is believable. And even though the diversity aspect is not predominant in the first few chapters, the world the main character enters is filled with international friends, foreign language, and characters with special needs. Easily recommendable for boys and girls nine to eleven.

This is an excellent addition for any 4th-5th grade classroom. It's easy enough to digest and has very good vocabulary for list creation. The plot is upbeat, fun and engaging, and holds promise to entice reluctant readers.

I read Leo Gray and the Lunar Eclipse with my son. He really liked it. He said he would read it again. I found it engaging and entertaining. This book would be a nice addition to a classroom library. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

What a fun adventure of a book! Middle graders are going to eat this up! Great classroom addition! Thank you netgalley for the free arc in exchange for an honest review!

A great fast read for any middle schooler interested in space/sci-fi. I loved the family clinging onto the old and Leo finding his own way in this space technology.

An impressive debut by K. J. Kruk. Leo Gray and the Lunar Eclipse is an effortless recommendation for both readers of middle grade and ya genres. The plot is set in a futuristic world that's both quirky yet familiar, mysterious and fun, and the cast makes room for all, from characters with robotic limbs to those who use futuristic sign language. Kruk’s writing style is best described as classical laced with inventive words and brainy humor.

Both of my girls, 9 and 11, loved Leo and his lunar adventure. A must-read for early middle school aged kids. The plot is both action and mystery driven and will keep your children’s eyes glued to the pages. My thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to share the advance reader’s copy with my family.

The Grays are introduced as an unusual family - they did not use self-flying cars, own a robotically maintained home, or wear ozone protected clothing. Mr. Gray drove a yellow VW Beetle from the 1960’s, used a lawnmower, and lived in a wood-paneled home. Mr. Gray ran a clock fixing store called “Widgets & Minutes” that contained  antiques that only a few people wanted.
The Grays’ 10 year old son, Leo, enjoyed science, physics, astronomy and bike riding. The newest fad on the TV was living on the Moon, and Leo was going to enter a science project contest given by his school to win a free ticket to the moon. 
Miss Witz, his science teacher, who was a robot, came over to his house to pick up Leo, and she was surprised by the plug in lamps, wallpaper and television, not to mention a runaway mouse that she zapped into immobility on her way out the door!
Leo wins the contest, but he loses the ticket because his father had a robbery at the store and the family needed the money, but he gets a summer job with a “treewatcher “ who gives him a ticket to the school on the Moon as a present!
Leo goes to space camp, and then the Moon, you will have to read the book for yourself to see what secrets the Moon holds !

Leo Gray and the Lunar Eclipse features Leo who is living in the time where people are living on the moon but he’s stuck on Earth with his parents who are still set in the 1970s. Leo desperately wants to go to the moon and following his adventures to get there and explore Luna City is fantastic! I loved how relatable all of Leo’s problems were at first like riding a bike when no one else did, his dad not wanting anything modern, not having the right clothes. This take a turn though and Leo’s problems suddenly become out of this world! Leo is a curious and adventurous eleven year old and reading about his trip and his friendships along the way, make this book one that I would definitely recommend to kids. I didn’t want to put it down so I know my students would love it!

So much fun! I absolutely love that this book is for boys and girls, and not marketed at one or the other! So refreshing, and a great read. Will be buying in physical format for my children!

Children will enjoy this book. It is nice to show them speaking their native language in addition to English. Two characters do this most with Portuguese and French. There is no translation but the words are placed where it makes sense as to what the word may mean or it is easy to look up! I would like to see Kruk's lazer sign language come to life as it is used between two siblings from Japan and I could not tell if they were signing in English or using Japanese Characters. I found Madam Cebulka most funny because the name translates to "Madam Onion" in my mother tongue, Polish. I recommended this book to my library because it is diverse, smart and fun.

I really enjoyed Leo's adventure. He and his friends are relateable and entertaining. All of the futuristic tech is super cool and middle grade students would love reading about it. Once Leo gets to Luna City, the story takes off. I particularly liked how the author overlaps two or more scenes that are happening at the same time, it's a very fresh style.

Junior School libraries/Y4-Y6 classrooms interested in STEM, social justice, and international studies will find Leo Gray and the Lunar Eclipse to be a proper addition to their collection. The book focuses on a boy who's stuck in the trenches of an unconventional family who thus uses his intellect to achieve acceptance to a utopian moon base academy. Upon his arrival there he ultimately learns to question the intentions of individuals he once admired when a dark plot to overturn Earth is revealed and the puzzle pieces are finally connected by Leo and his friends.