Review Detail

THE RUNAWAY RUMBLEBEAR is a charming sci-fi chapter book. The story transports the reader to another planet, Vela, where Charlie and her family have settled. Life on a new planet can be tough- and even tougher when she finds out that all their shimmer-apples have been stolen. With her best friend, Random the robot, they follow the trail of the thieves and end up discovering a young animal that they had not met before that they name Silver.

As Charlie tries to keep Silver secret until she can return him to his family, she begins to realize why they have taken all the apples, and hopefully, she can help to find a solution.

What I loved: This is a clever sci-fi read that will appeal to children who love adventure, imagination, and animals. There are some important lessons about colonization and taking care of indigenous species that are sprinkled throughout, as Charlie considers the impact of their settling on Silver and his family. The final theme includes learning how to share and take care of the animals and world around you.

The story is a fun one with plenty of mystery and sci-fi elements. Charlie and Random the robot are compelling characters that young readers will enjoy. As a chapter book, it has slightly larger than typical font for independent readers as well as illustrations on key pages (there are not illustrations on every page spread, but most).

What left me wanting more: As a small thing, I did not love Charlie working so hard to keep secrets from her parents, especially for the young intended audience. In addition, the illustrations were somewhat hard to see as they have a very light, sketch-like quality to them. While they were well done, it would have helped them to have thicker lines or something else to make them more easily visible throughout.

Final verdict: THE RUNAWAY RUMBLEBEAR is a clever and engaging chapter book for young explorers who enjoy sci-fi and animals.