Early Book Review: Legends of Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke

Legends of Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke is a graphic novel for children around seven years old and up. It is scheduled for release on September 4 2012. In this graphic novel we see the return of young Zita, who is still determined to find a way home to Earth. She is tired of the fame that comes with her adventures, so when a robot that looks like her offers her a temporary escape, Zita jumps at the chance. However, the robot wants to be more than a stand in, she wants to be a hero like Zita, and will let nothing stand in her way. Stranded, left behind with the doppelganger in her place, Zita and mouse steal a spaceship and chases after her friends. Help comes from unlikely sources, as the heroic deed the robot is heading for might require more than anyone has bargained for. New characters, as well as familiar favorites make themselves know as Zita struggles with what it means to be herself, and what it means to be a hero.

Legends of Zita the Spacegirl is a sequel, and I fully admit to having seen the first book go by me but have yet to read it.Fortunately, I do not think that missing out on the first one will leave new readers out in the cold. All anyone needs to know is that Zita belongs on Earth, and has ended up exploring space and having some crazy adventures. Te story is fun, the artwork and array of characters are both charming and creative. It is hard to find anything negative to say about the story. My only disappointment is that I had not read the first book, so do not have the full background on how Zita came to travel with the friends that she is chasing in this story. Thankfully, this is easy to remedy with a quick and delightful read of Legends of Zita the Spacegirl.

I highly recommend Legends of Zita the Spacegirl to the children out there that love a great, fun, graphic novel. I also recommend it to those that love adventure, fantasy, science fiction, and space travel tales but might not even know if they enjoy graphic novels yet. It should be obvious, but I also recommend it to fans of the first book, and those that simply love the work of Ben Hatke. Take a look at his work, and enjoy. You will thank me later.