Thirteen-year-old Ryan Hawthorn has spent his life on display as a human exhibit in the multi-eyed Pipe Men's intergalactic zoo. When his father is accidentally poisoned, it's up to Ryan and his seven-year-old sister, Becky, to scour the universe for the antidote. Along the way, they encounter many strange creatures—from the doglike Hottini to the spindly-legged, hairy Xaxor—and learn that the Pipe Men (or, as Becky calls them, "overgrown drainpipes") are not kindly overlords, as they had been led to believe. It's not only the humans who are planning to rebel! A wildly imaginative middle grade space-travel adventure.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
June 11, 2013 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780547859132
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780547859132
- File size: 1186 KB
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Languages
- English
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Levels
- ATOS Level: 4.3
- Lexile® Measure: 640
- Interest Level: 4-8(MG)
- Text Difficulty: 2-3
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Reviews
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Kirkus
May 1, 2013
In this uneven space adventure, two children defy their alien overlords to go on an intergalactic search for a cure for their dying father. Ryan and Becky's parents have always taught them to respect and obey the family's secret alien benefactors, the Pipe Men. But when their father is accidentally poisoned and the Pipe Men refuse to release him for treatment, their mother sends them on an illicit journey through the Pipe Men's interplanetary portals to search for the Brocine, the aliens who have the only antidote. Before long, the children find themselves in the middle of a galactic power struggle over control of the portals. While the highly implausible worldbuilding doesn't stand up to close inspection, it does have a certain pulp appeal, and the detailed descriptions make it easy to visualize the different aliens that Ryan and Becky meet. Unfortunately, the novel can't decide whether it's taking itself seriously or not. Silly character names like "Grav-e" (pronounced "gravy") and "Tast-e" (pronounced "tasty") might have worked in a pure farce or parody, but Thompson is also using Ryan's earnest first-person narration to condemn the Pipe Men's exploitation of other alien races. Follow the title's advice--escape from the Pipe Men and avoid this unfunny mess. (Science fiction. 9-12)COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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School Library Journal
September 1, 2013
Gr 4-7-Siblings Ryan, 13, and Becky, 7, spend their days on O-thul-ba, the Pipe Men's planet, being observed by the alien inhabitants as human exhibits in an intergalactic zoo. At night they leave through a portal that leads to their living-room closet at home in Oregon. The Pipe Men, with their multiple eyes set vertically in their tall, thin, cylinder-shaped bodies, have secretly come to Earth and persuaded Ryan's parents to work for them on O-thul-ba. No one else on Earth knows the Pipe Men exist. When the children's father is accidentally poisoned by another alien species, Ryan and Becky attempt to get the antidote by escaping through a series of confusing passageways with many doorways/portals leading to other planets. The Pipe Men are kidnapping some of the other exotic species from their home planets and stealing Earth's and the planets' resources, and the kids find themselves involved in an alien rebellion. Many plot points aren't fully explained, including the Pipe Men's backstory, why they chose Ryan's family, and how they continue to exert control over them and other alien species. The explanation of how the portals work isn't very clear either. The novel's intention to show how certain groups or species exploit and oppress others is interesting, but the presentation is more earnest than compelling or exciting.-Sharon Rawlins, New Jersey State Library, Trenton
Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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The Horn Book
July 1, 2013
Ryan and his family live as the human exhibit at the alien Pipe Men's intergalctic zoo. When Ryan's father gets sick, he and his sister Becky seek a cure and learn hard truths about their seemingly benevolent captors. The siblings interact with a myriad of alien races in surprising and hilarious ways. Fans of Madeleine L'Engle will enjoy this book.(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
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Formats
- Kindle Book
- OverDrive Read
- EPUB ebook
subjects
Languages
- English
Levels
- ATOS Level:4.3
- Lexile® Measure:640
- Interest Level:4-8(MG)
- Text Difficulty:2-3
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