Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

Such a fun space story!! I know the kids in my library will fall in love with these little rovers and their fun adventures across the galaxy!

Thanks to Netgalley and Kids Can Press for the ARC of this!

This was a super cute middle grade science fiction with a nice dash of real science interspersed throughout. The art style was so cute, and I love that the reader is shown how to draw their own Rover at the end. Recommend especially for the younger end of middle grade or those who want just a little education without reading full on non-fiction.

Roth has found a decent balance between storytelling and information. It's not a complex story but the facts are relayed as a fairly natural part of the plot. Some humor but mostly a gentle, meandering story.

Elementary graphic novels that are both fun and educational are right up my alley. Rover crash lands on Mars and discovers Speck buried under some rocks due loss of power from buried solar panels. The two become friends, go exploring, and find rock formations that have life. Throughout this friendship tale are real life facts about both rovers, other planets, rocks, minerals, etc. Overall, this book just works. Kids are going to find it fun and entertaining and they’re going to learn something at the same time. I can’t wait for book number two.

This is a cute, kid-oriented, graphic novel about two stranded robots, and the adventures they have together. The book is a sneaky one that makes learnin' fun with scattered cold, hard facts about rocks, minerals, and outer space. I'll be there for their next excursion.

I loved it!. This graphic novel is for children, but I think it is one of the nicest ways to get started and learn about science. One hundred per cent recommended, it's funny, entertaining and educational.

This book features two robots exploring a new planet — and some friends they make along the way. As the story progresses, they share relevant science facts, like the length of a microsecond, info about rocks, and more.

It’s illustrated in a comic book style. If your child is a fan of Wall-E, they will probably like this book. One robot is more aloof, so they have some funny / goofy asides as they try to get away from the other robot.

Thanks to the Kids Can Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Rover and Speck is an absolutely adorable little tale featuring two robots who landed on an unknown planet. Rover finds Speck, batteries completely uncharged, after landing and decides in lieu of continuing his own adventure, to first revive the little robot so they can explore together. What then ensues are a plethora of entertaining entanglements the two travelers must address in order to continue their missions.

The great thing about this book is that it does a wonderful job of incorporating silly stories to keep kids engaged while also providing a ton of opportunities to teach them not only about life on a planet in general, but also about the explorations we conduct of outer space, our solar system, and the planets within it. Fun facts are sprinkled throughout the book in clever ways to impart this knowledge, matching the overall theme and moments in the story as they do.

All I can say is, I’m a huge fan and I can’t wait to see where they head next!

Rover and Speck by Johnathan Roth is a cute narrative about a Rover that has been sent on a mission to a new planet and on their landing they end up crashing and breaking their antenna. While investigating and finishing the mission Rover comes upon another robot Speck who needs s little help to reboot and continue exploring with Rover. But there are inhabitants on the planet and they aren't that friendly, and Rover is still trying to figure out how they are going to call for help when it's time to leave the planet! I think that this is such a fun story that both entertains and teaches. I cannot wait for the opportunity to add this to my collection!

Story: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Worldbuilding: 5/5
Overall: 5/5
Thanks to NetGalley, Johnathan Roth, and Kids Can Press for sending me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Rover and Speck: This Planet Rocks,” written and illustrated by Jonathan Roth is a highly engaging story that makes a great introduction to space exploration, rover technology, and basic concepts about the nature of space. Two rovers, Rover and Speck, meet on Mars and begin an adventure-filled journey to help Rover find his way back to his ship. They cross some interesting creatures and face all sorts of dangers but help each other out and make new friends along the way. The story itself is a very easy read, great for reluctant readers or readers who need more visual input. The story itself is science fiction, but the fact sections found throughout the story give great basic facts and information in a variety of space-related themes. A fun read that is sure to pique the interest of young readers with it’s fun storyline and lovable characters.

- Teacher Tips -

* Great to read in conjunction with a unit on rovers and other space technologies

* Imagine and write their own story with Rover and Speck - or their own rovers (creative activity at the end of the story) - have them land at your school and try to figure out what they see - or another planet that you’ve researched together

This is a great book for kids interested in the exploration of Mars. I love the graphic novel format, with small snippets of information at the end of each section. There's a great message of friendship.

Energetic visual work sure to please young readers and comics fans. I highly recommend Jonathan Ruth’s work for classroom libraries.

First off, the artwork in this is really nice. It reminds me of some of the other graphic novels for this target demographic. I appreciated the way that the story works with interwoven (and linked but not necessarily all to space) facts and explanations. I do think that the headings for the facts could have done without the ! punctuation because there's no reason for it.

The story is cute. I was a little worried that it would be boring but in the end, the rock people made it fun. And there were things to accomplish along the way for both Rover and Speck. I do think that parents would have to perhaps engage a bit more in the story to explain somethings, because there are a few gaps here and there. But it's a good read, and also good for an early reader.

I also like that the end of the book includes a bit more information about the actual rovers that have helped with space exploration, turning this into more than a story about two robots.

Lastly, the craft at the end is fun and easy for anyone to do, no matter how young or old. Younger children will need a bit of help for sure, but it's not so complicated and doesn't really require going out to hunt down materials beyond what is probably already in a craft drawer.

This is cute! I will likely purchase this for our collection. I appreciated. the fun facts sprinkled throughout!

Usually once I do a scan on kids books- I let my 7 and 9 year
Old take a look.

My 9 year old didn’t leave his spot on the couch until he finished it, and when he was done he asked when the book comes out to have his own copy.

My 7 year old - not a major reader, but she did say the art was really nice and she thought the characters were cute.

I’m a big fan of graphic novels- they hold my kids’ attention enough and it’s helped my 9 year old love to read - this one was great, loved the science facts throughout. 10/10!

Well, this can be adapted to a fun, adventurous cartoon or anime!

The young readers will enjoy this colourful story with some of the most basic fun facts in between.

The characters are lively. The book reads more like a graphic novel rather than the usual comic book. But there's the vibes of both you know!

I feel it's me that I feel the art sequence and the dialogue fit needs more editing and a little blurred. I do feel the final contents of the physical copy will have as clear as the illustration on the cover.

A fun, informative read.

Petition to make this a course book for the target audience 💝

Thank you, Kids Can Press, for the advance reading copy.