Rappy Goes to Mars

Reviewed by: Sheila Dube - Springvale Public Library, Springvale, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: March 9, 2018

Review

Rappy the dinosaur is back in this fourth adventure that takes him from the school yard to outer space and back. At recess, a UFO hovers over the school yard and Rappy is beamed up into the spaceship and zipped into space by a skinny green alien named Janet. Rappy finds himself selected to marry her and he escapes by rapping until she returns him to earth. The layout of this I Can Read! Level 2 with help is 5-8 small sentences per page that utilize some difficult vocabulary that may be sounded out due to the rhyming scheme. At times the rapping works, at other times it seems to be trying too hard. Get ready to help readers sound out these vocabulary words: hovered, enormous , `astounded, vomit and diarrhea (which rhymes with idea in the text, but it actually appears first.) On the title page, parents who will be reading the book are encouraged to Rap It. Suggest to those who are fans of the other books.

Overall Book Score: fair