Target Practice (Cleopatra in Space #1) (1) - Hardcover

Maihack, Mike

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0545528429 ISBN 13: 9780545528429

Publisher: Graphix, 2014

Synopsis

A funny, action-packed graphic novel featuring a young Cleopatra who's transported to the future and learns it's up to her to save the galaxy. Now an animated TV series streaming on Hulu and Peacock!

When Cleo finds a mysterious tablet that zaps her to the far, really far future, she learns of an ancient prophecy that says she is destined to save the galaxy from the tyrannical rule of the evil Xaius Octavian. She enrolls in Yasiro Academy, a high-tech school with classes like algebra, biology, and alien languages (which Cleo could do without), and combat training (which is more Cleo's style). With help from her teacher Khensu, Cleo learns what it takes to be a great leader, while trying to figure out how she's going to get her homework done, make friends, and avoid detention!

About this title

About the Author

Mike Maihack is the creator of the Cleopatra in Space series. Book One: Target Practice won a Florida Book Award and was a YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. He is also the creator of the popular webcomic Cow & Buffalo and has contributed to books like Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman; Parable; Jim Henson's The Storyteller; Cow Boy; Geeks, Girls, and Secret Identities; and Comic Book Tattoo. Mike lives with his wife, two sons, and Siamese cat in Land O' Lakes, Florida. Visit him online at mikemaihack.com.

Reviews

Gr 3–5—The spunky Egyptian princess escapes her tutor and is transported to Mayet, a planet in the future. There, the 15-year-old learns that evil dictator Xaius Octavian is conquering neighboring civilizations. She discovers a Mayet prophesy about a hero who will defeat this evil and is astonished to learn the she is the foretold liberator. "Lightyears from home, millennia in the future, and… savior of the planet," she bemoans as she is sent to Mayet school for further education and training. Cleo is a troublemaker who skips school and performs poorly in academic subjects. However, the royal immediately takes to ray gun practice with the same zeal she anciently had for a slingshot. Her sharpshooting skills astound the student body. After four months of training, planet leaders evaluate her progress and determine that she is rash, lacks discipline, and needs two more years of preparation. But time is running out. Under the guise of a school assignment, she is sent on a dangerous mission to retrieve an important key. Plenty of action ensues as this Teflon-like heroine, seemingly oblivious to peril, fearlessly attempts to complete the task. This high-adventure fantasy, complete with a talking cat in the sidecar of a flying sphinx, is chock-full of action and attitude. Charming characters with expressive faces and disproportionately large heads seem younger than their 15 years. Although the opening time shifts are confusing, young readers will soon be caught up in the escapist fun.—Barbara M. Moon, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY

Instead of looking forward to her rule, Cleopatra—yes, that Cleopatra—prefers to skip her algebra lessons in favor of playing with slingshots. Plans to celebrate her fifteenth birthday are put on hold when she is transported to a future complete with ray guns, an adorable council of talking cats, and a dictator who has wiped out all the galaxy’s electronic knowledge and kept it for himself. The good news? Cleopatra is the savior who will restore order to the Nile galaxy. The bad news? There’s no way home. And she still has to take algebra. Cleo’s mentor, a historian cat, is one of the best sidekicks around, and the imaginative content (example: an interplanetary space bike in the shape of a sphinx) and flow of Maihack’s panels is a delight, with its exciting layout of a futuristic Egypt complete with cool pyramid skyscrapers. The origin narrative slows some of the action, but readers will still eagerly anticipate book two of this promising series. Grades 6-8. --Courtney Jones

Edition details

• Publisher: Graphix
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0545528429
• ISBN 13: 9780545528429
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Maihack Mike
• Number of pages: 176