Go Big or Go Home
When a meteorite crashes through the roof of Brady’s home in the Black Hills of South Dakota, the young astrophile is excited beyond belief. He names it Fred (for “Far Roaming Earth Diver”) and calls his cousin Quinn over to check it out. The two are enamored of anything extreme or insane and deem this space rock “extremely insane” before setting out for a headlong series of bicycling, fishing, and caving adventures. When Brady starts to surpass his normal physical limitations, it becomes apparent that the meteorite might have brought along some hidden visitors with it from outer space. Hobbs captures young teen dialogue well, and the characters are all easy to like in this solid adventure. Reluctant readers who’d rather be airborne than chairbound will appreciate the two young boys’ penchant for pushing the envelope, and the postulations involving extremophile organisms is a neat twist with just a hint of science behind it, even if it leads to a few mildly preposterous situations by the end. Grades 5-8. --Ian Chipman