Space Mission!: Rugrats

Gr 1-3–Parents who grew up watching The Rugrats will enjoy sharing this book with their own children, where the familiar characters experience an out-of-this-world adventure. Susie, Chuckie, and Tommy head out with their dads to a space convention, enjoying costumes and rides promoting a new movie. When one dad misplaces their event tickets, the kids decide to chase the movie villain instead, following a costumed character through the convention hall to destroy him using a mind power trick called “The Alpha,” featured in the new movie. Adventures abound and the kids become the stars of the show! The more challenging vocabulary and higher word count clearly reflect a Level 3 reading experience for emergent readers displaying greater fluency and word knowledge. The illustrations are bright and engaging, keeping the focus on the characters and story rather than distracting from them. Nevertheless, the plot of the story is adequate but not exceptional, resulting in a title that serves its purpose but is not exactly out of this world.