Galaxy Zack – Journey to Juno

Ray O'Ryan's Journey to Juno is the second Galaxy Zack book, a space adventure for 5 year olds about a boy who's still the new kid on a whole new planet.

What happens

Zack Nelson has moved from Earth to Nebulon, and it's pretty amazing. A robot called Ira runs the house and pops cookies out of a slot in the wall. The lift goes sideways. Even the ball games are played by robots.

But there's a problem at school. His name is Seth Stevens, and he keeps calling Zack an Earth wimp.

When the Explorers Club announces a trip to Juno, a brand-new planet covered in crystals, Zack signs up straight away. He and his friend Drake are going to make amazing discoveries together. Then the teams are read out. Guess who Zack gets as a partner?

Seth spends most of the trip glued to his phone, moaning that there's no signal. When Zack does all the work, Seth wants all the credit. (Zack does find something rather special deep in the caves.)

It's gentle and very easy to read. The chapters are short and each one has its own title. Half the fun is the Nebulon way of doing things. Something cool is "grape", and Ira insists on calling Zack "Master Just Zack". His twin sisters finish each other's sentences.

If your child has ever been the new one in class, or had someone at school who just won't leave them alone, Zack's feelings will be very familiar. He misses his best friend back on Earth. He gets cross and a bit fed up. But he still gets stuck in and has a brilliant time exploring.

The story wraps up this trip nicely and then ends on a "to be continued" moment, so you might want the next adventure ready.

What to read next

If your reader hasn't met Zack yet, go back to where it all started in Hello, Nebulon! That's the one where the Nelsons fly away from Earth, and Zack really doesn't want to go.