Spaced Out

by Stuart Gibbs Narrated by Gibson Frazier

Overview

The moon base commander has gone missing, and Dash Gibson is on the case in the second mind-boggling mystery in the Moon Base Alpha series from the New York Times best-selling author of Belly Up and Spy School.

There's nowhere to hide on the world's first moon base. After all, it's only the size of a soccer field. So when Nina Stack, the commander of Moon Base Alpha, mysteriously vanishes, the Moonies are at a total loss.

Though he may be just 12 years old, Dashiell Gibson is the best detective they've got. But this confusing mystery pushes Dash to his limits. Especially since Dash accidentally made contact with an alien and has to keep it a secret. With the fate of the entire human race hanging in the balance, will Dash be able to solve the mystery of the missing Moonie?

Editorial Reviews

JULY 2016 - AudioFile

Gibson Frazier is the consummate narrator for a rousing story featuring 12-year-old Dashiell (Dash) Gibson and his family, who who are part of NASA's Moon Base Alpha program. It's 2041, and the “lunarnauts” are doing research on the moon when their commander goes missing. As they all search for the missing man, Frazier's portrayals of Dash; Kira, his friend; and Violet, his sister, sound intelligent and appealing. Frazier's rendering of “NASA's Guide to Health and Safety” is delivered with authority, and the voice of Zan, the female alien who projects herself into Dash's mind, is also spot-on. Listeners will enjoy the story’s humor, vivid descriptions, and high adventure, especially as Dash nearly runs out of oxygen while searching the moon in a rickety old rover. Happily, the conclusion lends itself to a sequel. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

School Library Connection

"The book is filled with scientific information, humor, and an appropriate amount of noxious gasses."

Booklist Online

Life on the moon can be a drag . . . but it’s never dull.

School Library Journal

05/01/2016
Gr 5–8—The adventures of Dashiell "Dash" Gibson and the rest of the families on Moon Base Alpha, the first community on the moon, continue in this thrilling outing from popular author Gibbs. Life on the moon base is not going great for Dash. He's stressing out over his friendship with Zan Perfonic, an alien whom only he can see. He is terrorized by sibling bullies and, after defending himself, gets into trouble with Nina, the moon base's commander. When Nina goes missing one day, it's up to Dash and his friends to solve the mystery and get her back. A list of the residents of Moon Base Alpha precedes the story, making it more accessible to new readers. Gibbs also provides necessary backstory from the previous installment throughout. Excerpts from The Official Residents' Guide to Moon Base Alpha appear before each chapter, giving readers a hint of the space antics to come. Fantasy and mystery fans will find elements to enjoy in this fun, action-packed tale. An apocalyptic warning appears in the last chapter, ensuring more adventures in the near future.

JULY 2016 - AudioFile

Gibson Frazier is the consummate narrator for a rousing story featuring 12-year-old Dashiell (Dash) Gibson and his family, who who are part of NASA's Moon Base Alpha program. It's 2041, and the “lunarnauts” are doing research on the moon when their commander goes missing. As they all search for the missing man, Frazier's portrayals of Dash; Kira, his friend; and Violet, his sister, sound intelligent and appealing. Frazier's rendering of “NASA's Guide to Health and Safety” is delivered with authority, and the voice of Zan, the female alien who projects herself into Dash's mind, is also spot-on. Listeners will enjoy the story’s humor, vivid descriptions, and high adventure, especially as Dash nearly runs out of oxygen while searching the moon in a rickety old rover. Happily, the conclusion lends itself to a sequel. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2015-12-22
Another mystery presents itself on Moon Base Alpha. Twelve-year-old Dashiell Gibson has already solved one mystery on Moon Base Alpha, the colony on the moon he and his family call home (Space Case, 2014). Following the resolution of Dr. Holtz's murder, life has gone back to normal, with one exception: Zan Perfonic, a mysterious nonhuman life form that can project her consciousness into Dash's mind, is hanging out and trying her best to learn about humanity with Dash as her guide. The tutoring is put on hold when the base's commander, Nina Stack, goes missing without a trace. And of course, Dash was the last person to see Nina alive….Despite some solid humor and a functional mystery, there are two large problems with this sequel, and both stem from its position as a bridge from an opening volume to the series as a whole. The first is simple: this mystery is structured very similarly to its predecessor but isn't nearly as exciting. The first book had a dead body, where this one just has an absent one. The second issue is Zan's cliffhanging hint of a large catastrophe heading Earth's way. Since that concludes the narrative, the novel feels more like a place holder than a satisfying adventure in itself. Fans of the first book will find this a decent mystery but also a bit of a letdown; here's hoping things pick up again in the next volume. (Mystery. 9-14)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171063054
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	04/05/2016
Series:	Moon Base Alpha Series , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	938,363
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

Read an Excerpt

Spaced Out

Excerpt from The Official Residents’ Guide to Moon Base Alpha, © 2040 by National Aeronautics and Space Administration:

APPENDIX A

POTENTIAL HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS

Although every effort has been taken to make Moon Base Alpha the safest human habitat ever built, we still urge you to be extremely careful and vigilant for your own well-being. MBA’s medical bay has been stocked with plenty of emergency supplies and the latest medical technologyI so that the doctor on staff can handle even extreme medical emergencies, but all lunarnauts should bear in mind that life on the moon is inherently dangerous and that the closest hospital is back on earth, more than 250,000 miles away. Thus, you are advised to exercise extreme caution at all times and take great care to avoid risks.

To that end, we have compiled the following catalog of potentially dangerous areas, facilities, objects, and situations. Bear in mind this is by no means meant to be a complete list, but rather a guide to provide for better safety. There may be many other hazards at MBA not included below. Please do your best to be safe and alert to danger at all times while you are on the moon. Remember: The best way to avoid trouble is to not get into trouble in the first place!

I. At the time of printing. Because of the difficult nature of replacing technology on the moon, some tech may be slightly out-of-date by the time you read this.

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