Book Thoughts: The Super Red Rocket Sled of Mercury Mars By J. Lynch

Welcome to my next installment of my Book Thoughts! Today, I bring you a special treat: a cute children's book all about Martians playing in the snow! The story as to how I came across this little gem is quite fascinating (I'll explain at the end of my thoughts so as not to bog down the intro). Without further ado, I present to you my thoughts on "The Super Red Rocket Sled of Mercury Mars: Fourth Grade Friends On A Martian Snow Day" by J. Lynch.

The book cover for the novel "The Super Red Rocket Sled Of Mercury Mars" by J. Lynch

"Super Red," as I will shorten the title, is very much a book designed for children between the ages of 8 and 10. The subject matter is light and whimsical, going for a more "feel good" or "comfort" approach. That's not to say there isn't any conflict or danger, there very much is. It, however, is addressed in a very child friendly way. There are also plenty of cute comic style images (in the style of the cover) throughout the book, painting the scenes described. Though, not every page has images. This is very much a middle ground between young children's picture books and full novels both in terms of length, 96 pages, and frequency and prominence of imagery. The narrative of the story opens to a class of Martian 4th graders as their teacher explains that a huge snow storm is on the way. Everyone knows what that means, SNOW DAY! And no snow day is complete without a sled race! However, the protagonist, a Martian 4th grader named Mercury Mars, is worried; he doesn't have a sled to enter into the race. He and his two friends, Aurora and Jupiter, come up with a plan to build a super awesome red rocket sled that will surely guarantee victory. The three friends must then scavenge special parts from special places in order to build their sled. There may also be a nefarious denizen of the mountain that is most displeased by children racing around his slopes. I won't go any further or deeper into the plot here. If you want to find out what happens, you'll have to read the book yourself. Would I recommend this book? Yes. If you're looking for an easy and fun read for an 8 to 10 year-old, this is a great choice. If you have younger children, it would be great to read to/with them.

Be sure to check out this cute book on Amazon! Available in paperback and kindle formats.

For those of you who've read this far and are interested in the story as to how I came across this book, here is your "reward." On the release of my own novel "Mercury Snow", any time I or someone looked up "Mercury Snow" on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble, "Super Red" would appear right next to it in the listing. The two books were neighbors. Over time, "Super Red" began to ingrain itself into my mind as I saw it again and again. At first, I had no interest as it was a children's book and I was not a child. However, I realized that I knew a few children who might enjoy it. I could read it, "Book Thought" it, then wrap it up for Christmas. Perfect! On a side note, this book has been published since 2015 with very few reviews. As a fellow author, that hurts my soul. This travesty cannot continue! Please be sure to check this book out and show it some love; it's the neighborly thing to do. Full link to "Super Red": https://www.amazon.com/Super-Rocket-Sled-Mercury-Mars/dp/1511541490

A screen shot of the amazon listings of Mercury Snow neighboring The Super Red Rocket Sled of Mercury Mars.