Man on the Moon (a day in the life of Bob)

Man on the Moon: (a day in the life of Bob) by Simon Bartran
2002

     Bob gets up everyday at six o'clock, has breakfast and heads to the rocket launchpad to go to work.  Bob works on the moon. He's the moon's custodian, making sure its surface is spotless and ready to be visited by curious tourists everyday.  He gives them guided tours and tells them all about the moon.  "Sometimes people ask him about aliens, and Bob explains patiently that there aren't any."  After all the tourists have left, Bob does a final check and heads back to Earth.
     Okay, so aside from the fact that Bob has a super cool job going to the moon everyday, you can tell by the text that it's a pretty simple premise with deadpan text.  But believe me, this book is a blast.  The magic of Man on the Moon: (a day in the life of Bob) lies in the illustrations.  Simon Bartran wrote it and also illustrated it and made a perfect dialogue between the two: while the text is straightforward and bland, the illustrations are witty, entertaining and hilarious.  While Bob insists there're no aliens anywhere, we can see them everywhere, in every page.  My son was laughing hysterically, finding aliens and making fun of Bob's obliviousness.  Great random library pick (I love when that happens...when a book just seems to call you from the library shelves...pick me!)

Beegu

Beegu by Alexis Deacon
Illustrated by Alexis Deacon
2003

     "Beegu was not supposed to be here. She was lost."  Her flying saucer has crashed and Beegu is just trying to make her way in a new land, where nobody seems to understand her.    She doesn't like being alone and she's trying to make friends but she's had no luck.  All the adults she comes across have rejected her.   Beegu comes across a group of kids in a school yard and joins them in their games.  They love the three eyed alien and give her a red hula-hoop as a gift after their teacher kicks Beegu out of the yard.  When her family rescues her, Beegu tells them about the unfriendly Earth creatures, "but there were some small ones who seemed hopeful."
     Deacon illustrations are quirky and interesting.  The colors are unexpected and Beegu's glowing yellow skin contrast with the dark tones he uses for Earth.   Beegu will connect with all the "misunderstood" little ones at home.

Space Boy

Space Boy by Leo Landry
Illustrated by Leo Landry
2007

     Space Boy is the story of a kid who cannot fall asleep because his house is just too noisy. His baby sister is crying, his dog is barking, and his parents are listening to the radio. Too loud!  So Nicholas decides to pack up a snack, get on his rocket and fly to the moon.
     My son absolutely loves this book.  He found so many parallels between Nicholas and himself: "Mommy, my baby sis is also too loud, and the TV is too loud, and I love the moon, and I make lists, and, and...."  You get the idea.  The story is very sweet and lets kids explore the idea of spending time in the moon.  What would you bring? What would you do? Would you come back to Earth right away? This is a book for all those kids obsessed with space and all of us wanting to escape every once in a while.