AstroNuts Mission Two: The Water Planet

The Astro-Nuts are a secret explorer group sponsored by NNASA (Not the National Aeronautic and Space Agency). Four animals have been made into super explorers designed to find the next planet that humanity can live on. There’s Alphawolf (the leader), SuperHawk (the planner), LaserShark (nurse, security, chef), and Stinkbug (pilot, engineer). Their rocket lives in Thomas Jefferson’s nose on Mount Rushmore, and the catalyst for their mission is that we have exceeded 400 PPM of CO2 in the atmosphere. On The Water Planet, we travel to a mostly aquatic planet, where tests are derailed by politicians telling us that everything is fine and great, appealing to Alphawolf’s ego, but secretly a revolution is brewing from the underclass.

Each book is packed with environmental facts. The Planet Earth narrates sections, and she lets you know how humanity has screwed up the environment and continues to do so. You’ll also see the scientific method in action, and see how we test things over and over again to come to facts. One of my favorite parts are the gorgeous collage illustrations. Weinberg uses art from the Rijksmuseum (Dutch National Museum) that you can find online and then colored it. He explains the process in the back of the book. There is also a bit of potty humor in these books too, as Stinkbug just can’t help himself sometimes.

These books are perfect for fans of Sciezka’s other books (like Time Warp Trio), Captain Underpants, and other zany tales. Book one (Plant Planet) in the series is already out, and The Water Planet comes out in August.

In the second mission of AstroNuts the team takes on a corrupt government which brings the series to a whole other level--showing the reader not only the environmental impacts of our choices but also the humane effects of our choices. Once again the artwork was so unique! A wonderful second book of the series.

Once again we get to go on an adventure with the AstroNuts crew! The story is fun and engaging and yet still has a very important message that we all need to learn! Mr. Scieszka was able to include the power of the "scientific brain" and the scientific process in the story flawlessly! I can't wait to share this with my students.

I liked this one as much as the first one. I really like this author and try to read anything by him. This is a great addition to any collection.

The overall message of this book is truly timely and powerful - that greedy lords are ruling the universe. The newest AstroNuts mission sends the explorers on an adventure seeking out other "Goldilocks" planets - not to hot, not too cold, but just right.

As I first started reading it I was looking through my adult eyes and the text bubbles all over the page were a bit hectic for my own reading progression.. But I made myself look at it from the point-of-view of a young reader, and I could see the value in it, and know my young patrons can appreciate the graphic nature of this. The overall message is serious - that if we do not work together and if we continue to allow greedy business owners to make all the rules in our society we are doomed, just like the hero's in this story. Jon Sciezka and Steven Weinber's collaboration in this story are timely and profound. As an adult I understand the message on my own level. I think my impressionable young readers will capture the essence of this story in their own unique way.

This book was really funny and conveyed an important theme. I liked the point of view and the notes along the side. It is a very imaginative series and will make you laugh out loud. I love the characters and their personal traits. The style of this book is very different. It looks like the illustrator drew the background, but cut out some of the parts. My only complaint was that it was a bit too cluttered, but it was a good book nonetheless. This book is great for readers about 7-8.

This is an out of this world book! If you are ready for a funny book for your kids with good environmental and social skills themes, this book more than delivers. The plot is engaging, the animal characters diverse in personality and experience, and the art is dynamic and fun. The collage style creates hilarious cultural references too! Great discussion opportunities for politics, teamwork, and environmental issues. Even better than the original!

I received an electronic ARC from Chronicle Books through NetGalley.
So much to enjoy with the second book in this series. The four AstroNuts are still looking for a Goldilocks planet to save earth's inhabitants. Their new mission is to explore a water planet and see if it's viable. The clam population certainly wants to trade planets. Alphawolf falls for the hype but the other three want to do further investigation. Good thing they did. This planet is dying faster than earth.
Scieszka seamlessly slips in science and environmental messages along with the humor. Mid elementary level readers will love the graphic illustrations and the humorous interchanges among characters. More advanced readers will enjoy the puns as well.

Author Jon Scieszka provides another humorous title in the AstroNuts series, The Water Planet. Young fans of graphic novels and the humor of Jon Scieszka will not be disappointed. In addition to favorite characters are opportunities for discussion on climate change because the Earth is unlivable and they have to find a new planet to live on. Students will love the how-to drawing addition in the back. An approachable introduction to science that could be paired with informational titles.

This is the perfect title to hand to readers of graphic novels that might need a little more encouragement to pick-up a straight novel. The graphics and story make this a super fun and fast read! I would recommend this for bookfairs and classroom independent reading.

What a fun and funny read! I enjoyed all the environmental facts and overall message this book has. Cant wait to read more from Jon Scieszka and this series!

Our 7-year-old son was a very big fan of the first book in the AstroNuts series, and he was ecstatic that he was able to get an early look at the second book - The Water Planet. He's a big graphic novel fan right now and he devoured this book in one single sitting. For this one in particular he points out that he really likes the clams and the giant whale headquarters. Overall he's in love with the style of humor and the characters - the goofy, funny animals with funny superpowers as he puts it. He's adamant that his favorite AstroNut is Stink Bug. Personally I love the wit and the art and the fact that there is science and conversations about the environment to be had on top of the goofy fun. The funny thing is, it seems that it's so well blended in to the story that he's not even aware of the science being talked about, as he's much more focused on the characters and story. It's simply one of those series that's perfect for our son right now and we're excited to keep following along.

I'm wavering between a 3 and a 4 for this book. I did enjoy the concept of it. Four "animals" with superpowers are sent on a mission to find a new planet since humans are destroying Earth. There are a lot of environmental and scientific facts tossed in throughout the book. The illustrations are very colorful, and very busy. As a grownup, I found it to be too distracting, but I can see how the younger crowd would love it. I don't think you need to read the first book before reading this one, but I would have to say I enjoyed the first book more than this one.