School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Full of easy sight words, with a few panels per page, this graphic novel will appeal to beginning readers and budding comic book fans. Audiences will identify with the lonely robot as he eagerly searches for companionship. The book opens when the robot crashes his spaceship and is set adrift on a strange planet. Hearing a bang, he goes in search of the sound. On his journey he meets a psychedelic cat, a raging dragon, and an imitative bird. The robot attempts to talk to them but can utter only the word blip. Sadly, he is misunderstood time and time again. The robot's adventures take him underwater, through a mushroom forest and video game-like mazes. His pursuit eventually leads him to a newfound friend. The few words in this text are often alliterative (bleep, blip, and bang), and the colorful pages are filled with action and emotion. As with all Toon books, there are tips for parents and teachers on how to read comics with kids. VERDICT Recommended for readers new to the format.-Lisa Gieskes, Richland County Public Library, Columbia, SC © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
A robot's spaceship crashes onto an unfamiliar planet in Richards's first children's book, told through sequential panels and little text beyond a scattering of sound effects, including the robot's repeating "Blip." With its squared-off head, chunky white spacesuit, and backpack, Richards's hero looks a bit like an amalgamation of the Tin Man, a Teletubby, and an intrepid middle schooler. Scared off by a loud banging noise, the robot travels across surreal terrain filled with oversize mushrooms, camouflaged dragons, and treacherous swamps, an aesthetic that evokes the underground comics of the 1970s. Attempts at friendship-with a Cheshire-like cat, a bird that won't stop jabbering, and a brown-skinned girl in a space helmet-don't go especially well. After several death-defying escapes, the robot learns why the first rule of getting lost in the wilderness is to stay put: that banging sound from the opening pages is actually a female robot repairing her spaceship, which they use to depart together. The robot's difficulties in connecting with the beings he encounters heightens the loneliness and strangeness of his journey, making the friendship he finally finds all the more rewarding. Ages 4-6. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
This entry-level comic book shows a robot emerging from a crashed rocket ship and navigating the strange surroundings while looking for its friend. The text is sparse, consisting mostly of "blip" and other sound-effect words. The robot encounters strange creatures and adventures aplenty, but parts of the story don't quite add up. Nevertheless, the clean, detailed graphics will keep emerging readers interested. (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
A little white robot is merrily piloting his spaceship when Tchok! his needle-nosed craft lodges in a sharp peak. He climbs down to the planet's surface, only to hear a frightening banging, so he scampers away and explores. The robot is disoriented in this alien place, and Richards cleverly heightens the confusion by transforming background scenery and vegetation into scene-stealing creatures. As the planet comes to life in unexpected ways, both aboveground and underwater, the robot communicates in blips and bleeps, and sometimes the planet's creatures respond. Still, though, no one quite understands him, so he returns to his ship and investigates the banging it's another robot, just like him, with a spaceship big enough for two. Richards' large-format panels feature crisp, clear, imaginative figures in an old-fashioned palette, and the mostly wordless action is easy to decipher. Though some little ones might wonder why the robot couldn't make friends with the creatures he met on the planet, the engaging fantastical landscape and lively action are nevertheless plenty of fun.--Hunter, Sarah Copyright 2016 Booklist
