Peter Nelson.  Herbert’s Wormhole: A Novel in Cartoons.  Illustrated by Rohitash Rao.  Bowen Press, 2009.  304 pages.  Age 9 to 12.  On sale May 5th.

Summary – Once Alex beats AlienSlayer 2 he’ll have to make good on his promise to spend the rest of the summer outside, where a Safe-T-Kids Jump n’ Jammin’ Jungle Gym and playdates with his nerdy neighbor, Herbert, await.  Nope, he’s not six, but his parents don’t seem to know that.  But then one of Herbert’s odd inventions turns the jungle gym slide into a wormhole, sending them 100 years into a future where humans live side be side with G’daliens, whatever they are.  Suddenly summer is looking a little less boring.

Kudos – It’s genuinely funny!  Also, I love Alex’s below-the-surface crush on his neighbor, Sammi, that he doesn’t quite understand.

Kudon’ts – How they got the name G’daliens was never explained.  Is there an Australian connection, or does it just sound funny? ^[1]

Points –

• +5 for toupe-wearing octopus-looking aliens
• +25 for antigravi-T-ball
• +40 for “We’ll always have Meatloaf Mondays.”
• +40 for the Department of Human/G’Dalein Harmony Enforcement

Quotable –

Unstructured fun:

“Alex got up and approached the fence.  A weird feeling crept through his belly as he heard himself ask, ‘What are you doing tomorrow?’

“She thought for a moment.  ‘Tomorrow’s Friday.  I’ve got Crouching Ladybug Kung Fu in the morning, then hang-gliding lessons from eleven to one.  Fifteen minutes for lunch, then extreme soapmaking.’

“‘Jeez,’ Alex said.  ‘Don’t you get sick of having every minute of your summer planned out and scheduled for you?’

“Sammi shrugged, then offered, ‘I’m on a waiting list for a Mommy & Me class on unstructured fun.’”

Disclosure: An uncorrected review copy was provided by the publisher.  They neither paid nor pressured me to speak well of it.  Only about the first fourth had (unfinalized) illustrations, so my accuracy may be limited.

^[1] Unless it’s explained in the artwork.  I shouldn’t jump to conclusions.