Science fiction is not usually a genre that I find myself reading, even if it’s children’s literature, yet I would wholeheartedly encourage my children to give it a whirl. An excellent book to start with would be Trapped, the first of two books in the Prometheus Project series of science fiction literature for younger readers. Trapped is the adventure of two curious siblings who set out to discover what exactly their secretive scientist parents are working on, and of course, in the fashion of the greatest adventures, it turns out to be a top secret government project.
The part I loved most about this tale is the scientific facts and data woven seamlessly into the story. Ryan, the older brother, is a veritable wealth of information that he has gleaned from his knowledgeable parents or learned on his own, and he applies it to the problems they face on their adventure. Without evening realizing it, children learn about how to form a hypothesis, the properties of water and how to determine if a liquid is indeed, H2O, and even a smattering of time-travel suppositions included, to name just a few. This all comes from the plot itself and is written so well that it doesn’t sound the least bit like a science textbook, only an exciting adventure that you can’t put down!
I really like the fact that the two siblings were supportive of each other, yet had a realistic brother/sister relationship. Regan, the sister, becomes more and more confident in her abilities and problem-solving as the tale goes along and older brother Ryan even voices out loud how proud he is of her. They work together as a team to solve problems, take care of each other and I think it’s a wonderful solid friendship the siblings have to go along with their family ties.
And also tying into the family theme is the fact that there is a general lack of disturbing violence in this book as well, which was a refreshing change, and I can confidently say this is a perfect introduction for pre-teen readers, boy or girl.
Full of everything you could imagine from the science fiction field, from robots to new worlds, secret password decoding to laser beams, this book is a fun and fantastic read! I will be posting my review of the second book later this week, and it didn’t fail to disappoint either!
Reading level: ages 9+
Page Count: 139
Publisher: DNA Press
What to expect: a parent does get hurt which might upset younger children, a couple scary parts that turn out ok, some threatening language, security men carrying guns but don’t shoot anyone.
Publisher’s synopsis: This fast-paced science fiction adventure about an underground city built by an advanced alien civilization teaches children about science and technology while engaging their imaginations. Determined to learn why their scientist parents forced them to suddenly move to a boring town in Pennsylvania, Ryan and Regan follow them to work and discover that their parents are really working on a top secret investigation of an underground city. After cracking passwords, dodging barbed wire, and defeating laser beam alarms, they find themselves trapped in the abandoned city and under attack by a swarm of insect-like creatures. While trying to determine the nature of the creatures and how to escape them, scientific concepts such as the immune system, nanotechnology, and black holes are explained and explored.
About the Author: From Douglas E. Richards website: Hi, my name is Doug. I grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio with my parents and my sister, Pam. I went to Finneytown High School, and then graduated with a degree in microbiology from Ohio State University, a master’s degree in molecular biology from the University of Wisconsin, and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Chicago. I now live in San Diego, California with my wife, Kelly, and my two children, Ryan and Regan (Regan is pronounced the same as the President). The main characters in my books are named after my children. I also have a furry black dog named Dash.
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[...] on the same excellent science fiction vein as the others. I have reviewed the other two books, Trapped and Captured and was very excited to review the next in the [...]