Overall, this was a funny, silly book that kids would probably love. I appreciated the illustration style, the inventiveness (like a taco-powered rocket? that’s amazing!), the bright and heartwarming colors, and the very distinct personalities and characteristics of the two main characters. I think, in general, the plot is rather unclear; I’m guessing you probably would have needed to read the other books to know what they’re doing. Something about the disjointedness of the characters’ thoughts also made the storyline hard to follow. I’m guessing it’s part of their characterization, but as a new reader, that made it somewhat unpleasant to read. I loved that there was a unique family configuration modeled here - the 3 dads and Pluto. The 3 dads were underdeveloped (though I’m guessing readers would get to know them better in a later book), and I found the one black-and-white thinking dad to be particularly off-putting and developmentally inappropriate. I’m not sure if the author intended to have the dad mimic child-like ways of thinking for a certain effect, but if they did, it didn’t land for me. It made me think the parent immature and unfit to be a parent. Maybe they were laying the message on thick, I don’t know. And the quick fix resulting in him changing his mind made matters worse, in my opinion. I would have liked there to be a more thoughtful conversation and more ambiguity (as is realistic in real life - we don’t just abruptly switch a long-held belief because of one contrasting experience).

This book was likely intended for middle childhood kiddos, and I would say for a native English speaking child, this would be decently appropriate. Because the characters sometimes have atypical ways of speaking or aren’t fluent in their grammar and diction, I don’t think this would be appropriate for children learning English without the supervision of an adult to explain the intentionally-silly grammar changes.

A graphic novel with bright colors and quirky characters was perfect for my 8 y.o. and 9 y.o. as a read-aloud book. They definitely could have read this on their own, too. My kids laughed at the silly dialog and were repeating some of the lines afterwards, making each other giggle.

Personally, I enjoyed the sweetness of Pluto's character and the illustrations. The messages within are especially good... understanding and embracing differences, telling the truth, helping others, and friendship.

I'll pick up a copy of the first 3 Pluto Rocket books so I can share with my kids.

[I was gifted an ebook in exchange for my honest review.]

Arc Copy...fist dive into the world of "Pluto Rocket" but I can very much see would appeal to readers of mad cap friendship pairings like "Bird and Squirrel", and so forth.

Parent/Educator Review: Joe Pidgeon and Pluto Rocket continue their adventure to the moon. They are determined to make it look as though Pluto Rocket made her broadcast from the moon and not Earth (as her three dads would disapprove).

They discover you can make a place feel like home by focusing on who you’re with, not what is missing. Had a nice message about traveling to discover what is different in other areas. Also discusses niceness is likely in everyone.

It started off very funny with galaxy places of interest and the engineering of the rocket ship, but slowed in the middle. But did have grata messages weaved within.

As an educator, I struggled with some of the words, “explores” used as a noun was hard. And wouldn’t recommend for children learning English as a second language.

Review from three kids (ages 3, 6, 8): their favorite part (and illustration) is The Gassy Giants. They laughed and laughed. My daughter (6) also loved the purple colored dad and his taco love in the background. All three kids thought it was funny and all give it a solid 4 stars. Mom is more a 3.5.

Thank you @Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the digital ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Pluto Rocket: Over the Moon. This story was a great continuation of the series. I am such a fan of the art and deep, vibrant colors. The characters are cute, the story is simple and easy to understand. This will be a nice addition to our graphic novel collection.

The book was beautifully written. Overall, the book was well written and I did really enjoy it. Thank you for this advance reading copy!