Status
Available
Local notes
PB Boy
Collection
Genres
Publication
Walden Pond Press (2011), Edition: Reprint, 336 pages
Description
Juvenile Fiction. Juvenile Literature. Science Fiction. HTML: Liam has always felt a bit like he's stuck between two worlds. This is primarily because he's a twelve-year-old kid who looks like he's about thirty. Sometimes it's not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school or when he convinces a car dealer to let him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly it's just frustrating, being a kid trapped in an adult world. And so he decides to flip things around. Liam cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space, a special flight for a group of kids and an adult chaperone, and he is going as the adult chaperone. It's not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again--only this time he's 239,000 miles from home. Frank Cottrell Boyce, author of MILLIONS and FRAMED, brings us a funny and touching story of the many ways in which grown-upness is truly wasted on grown-ups..… (more)
Awards
Great Stone Face Book Award (Nominee — 2012)
Sasquatch Book Award (Nominee — 2013)
Nēnē Award (Nominee — 2012)
Guardian Children's Fiction Prize (Shortlist — 2008)
Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing (Nominee — 2009)
Independent Booksellers' Book Prize (Shortlist — Children's — 2010)
Concorde Book Award (Shortlist — 2010)
Virginia Readers' Choice (Nominee — Middle School — 2013)
Black-Eyed Susan Book Award (Nominee — Grades 6-9 — 2012)
CYBILS Awards (Nominee — 2008)
Sakura Medal (Middle School — 2011)
Best Fiction for Young Adults (Selection — 2011)
CCBC Choices (2011)
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Kids (Fiction for Older Readers — 2010)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2008
Physical description
336 p.; 5.13 inches
Media reviews
Publishers Weekly
The hero of Boyce’s enchanting third novel has grown a bit over the summer. “Seven inches is not a spurt,” his father says. “Seven inches is a mutation.” Having facial hair and the height of an adult is a nuisance for 12-year-old Liam, until he realizes he can pass for a grownup. The
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charade escalates into danger when Liam passes himself off as his own father and wins a trip to a new theme park in China with his friend Florida, where they will be the first to experience an out-of-this-world new thrill ride. “The Rocket” turns out to be a real rocket, and the novel opens with Liam and four other kids literally lost in space. What follows is a hilarious and heartfelt examination of “dadliness” in all its forms, including idiotic competitiveness and sports chatter, but also genuine care and concern. Luckily for the errant space cadets, Liam possesses skills honed playing World of Warcraft online—yes, here is a novel, finally, that confirms that playing computer games can be good for you. A can’t-miss offering from an author whose latest novel may be his best yet. Ages 8–12. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member madcurrin
'That's the scary thing about children. They will vote to go into space with someone who is dangerously useless if it means they get a longer go on the PlayStation.'
Totally cool! 'Cosmic' is essentially a ridiculous story with a ridiculous premise and a ridiculous plot, but the narrator's voice is
Love this quote too:
'Monopoly! Has ANYONE EVER played Monopoly to the end? Don't most people just sort of slip into a kind of boredom coma after a few goes and wake up six months later with a handful of warm hotels?'
I'll be reading more of Frank Cottrell Boyce after this.
Totally cool! 'Cosmic' is essentially a ridiculous story with a ridiculous premise and a ridiculous plot, but the narrator's voice is
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so engaging it carries you through. Here's the plot: 12 year old boy is mistaken for a man and goes to space in a ship designed to be flown by children. Yes, it's over the top, a kind of space age 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', but the fantasy is grounded with loads of humour and a great big heart. Love this quote too:
'Monopoly! Has ANYONE EVER played Monopoly to the end? Don't most people just sort of slip into a kind of boredom coma after a few goes and wake up six months later with a handful of warm hotels?'
I'll be reading more of Frank Cottrell Boyce after this.
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LibraryThing member YouthGPL
Elly says, " This is a humorous story about Liam, a 12-year-old boy who is so tall he is often mistaken for an adult. This is great, if he wants to impersonate a teacher or test drive a Porsche. But impersonating an adult to fly to the moon brings far more responsibility than Liam is ready for.
The
The
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book is light-hearted overall, fun to read, and is fairly well paced, but does have a couple of slow spots. There are poignant scenes as Liam discovers what being the adult means. There is one scene in which Liam is offered alcohol and does over-indulge. It does appear that, other than Liam's father, the adults in this story are self-absorbed and foolish. Show Less
LibraryThing member alyson
I had really enjoyed Million and Framed, so I expected to like this. But really I loved it! Liam is a terrific character and I had no troubles getting caught up in this improbable tale. This should be on the top of our summer reading recommendations this year as well as in lots of best of lists for
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2010! Show Less
LibraryThing member lilibrarian
Liam is only 12, but matured early and looks older. Much older. Old enough to be a dad. So when he wins a contest for dads and kids to go to China to try out a new thrill ride, he enlists another 12-year-old to be his daughter, and off they go. The thrill ride turns out to be the first spaceship to
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take civilians into space - and Liam is the responsible adult going with 4 children. Show Less
LibraryThing member prkcs
Twelve year old Liam looks like he's thirty. Sometimes it's not bad; for example on the first day of school the principal mistakes Liam for a teacher or when he convinces a car dealer to let him test drive a Porsche. So feeling like he's stuck between two worlds, Liam cons his way into being the
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adult chaperone on the first space ship to take civilians into space. But when the ship is stuck 230,000 miles from home, being mistaken for an adult is not good. Show Less
LibraryThing member jugglingpaynes
Cosmic is a story about a boy, Liam Digby, who is so tall for his 12 years he is constantly mistaken for an adult. A series of misadventures leads him to end up on a secret rocket mission that has gone wrong. Parts of the story are reminiscent of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This is a sweet
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children's novel with wonderful funny moments which ends up being a beautiful tribute to dads everywhere. Show Less
LibraryThing member dominirose
Filled with teen and father humor. In the vein of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
LibraryThing member Rhinoa
A tale of Liam, an 11 year old from Liverpool who looks much older than he is. He manages to get on a spaceship as the responsible adult with a group of children which gets into trouble. Hillarious!
LibraryThing member shelf-employed
An improbable premise powers this first-person, space-age novel. Twelve-year-old Liam Digby is tall for his age - so tall, in fact, that he's often mistaken for an adult - great fun at the amusement park or car dealership, but a very different story when he finds himself in China's Gobi desert,
The laughs are plentiful in this cosmic romp, but Liam and Florida also manage to learn a few things about space, human nature, themselves, and of course, "dadliness.”
"One person has just left the crowd and is heading over to me. It's Dad. He's walking toward me like there's some special gravity pulling him toward me. And maybe there is. Maybe everyone's got their own special gravity that lets you go far away, really far away sometimes, but which always brings you back in the end. Because here's the thing. Gravity is variable. Sometimes you float like a feather. Sometimes you're too heavy to move. Sometimes one boy can weigh more than the whole universe. The universe goes on forever, but that doesn't make you small. Everyone is massive. Everyone is King Kong.”
Well said.
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playing "dad" to his friend, Florida, as they train for a secret mission to outer space. He does his best to appear "dadly," even referring to a copy of "Talk to Your Teen," hijacked from his own dad, who believes Liam and Florida to be attending a multi-day Gifted and Talented symposium for school!The laughs are plentiful in this cosmic romp, but Liam and Florida also manage to learn a few things about space, human nature, themselves, and of course, "dadliness.”
"One person has just left the crowd and is heading over to me. It's Dad. He's walking toward me like there's some special gravity pulling him toward me. And maybe there is. Maybe everyone's got their own special gravity that lets you go far away, really far away sometimes, but which always brings you back in the end. Because here's the thing. Gravity is variable. Sometimes you float like a feather. Sometimes you're too heavy to move. Sometimes one boy can weigh more than the whole universe. The universe goes on forever, but that doesn't make you small. Everyone is massive. Everyone is King Kong.”
Well said.
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LibraryThing member Shanon.sval5976
This book is about a boy named Liam Digby who grows up too fast for his age. He passes as an adult. Liam takes advantage of this and pretends to be an adult. He doesnt just pretend to be any adult, he acts like a dad. His friend Florida helps him. Florida acts like his daughter and they both go on
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a trip Liam won on Drax to CHINA! They go on a Cosmic rocket to outerspace. At the end Liam crashed onto Earth and found his way home. Show Less
LibraryThing member cay250
Liam has always felt a bit like he's stuck between two worlds. This is primarily because he's a twelve-year-old kid who looks like he's about thirty. Sometimes it's not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school or when he convinces a car dealer to let
Show More
him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly it's just frustrating, being a kid trapped in an adult world. And so he decides to flip things around. Liam cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space, a special flight for a group of kids and an adult chaperone, and he is going as the adult chaperone. It's not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again—only this time he's 239,000 miles from home. Show Less
LibraryThing member ChristianR
This was awkward to read, because at times I laughed so hard (quietly!) that I must have looked completely odd. The end didn't strike me quite as funny as the beginning, but there were many many hilarious parts most of the way through. Liam is a very tall 12-year-old with facial hair, so people
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assume he's much older than he is, and he happily plays along. He and his friend Florida especially like acting like a Dad and a daughter. So when he is invited to bring his daughter along to a special new amusement park for a once-in-a-lifetime experience, he convinces her to go along. Only the park turns out to be in China, and the ride is a ride in a space rocket, and the ride goes really wrong. Still, the kids act like kids. That's what I found the most funny -- how the author nailed the kids. I know a boy who has always been really tall for his age, and I could just imagine him doing the things Liam does to fool adults and getting a real charge out of it. I also enjoyed the author's previous book, Framed, and the movie based on his book Millions. Show Less
LibraryThing member BrookeC4
Great book a great laugh out loud I recommened this to everyone
LibraryThing member rgruberexcel
RGG: A middle school boy big enough and mature enough to masquerade as an adult has an entertaining space adventure. The messages are important and integral to the story. References to the Apollo moon missions are detailed and informative. For anyone who wants to be an astronaut. Reading Level:
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10-12. Show Less
LibraryThing member LaneLiterati
This was a really fun book! I enjoyed it thoroughly, and found it to be quite engaging. The book is very Charlie and the Chocolate Facotry-esque, only with space, instead of candy, and with fathers instead of children, being put under close scrutiny. In no way did the book feel like a knock-off,
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but it very much is reminiscent of C and C.F. Show Less
LibraryThing member SmithSJ01
I opened this up with much excitement, having enjoyed ‘Millions’ and ‘Framed’, however there was something missing from this that those two contained. Whilst it was a fun story I found myself looking towards the end as I was never completely engaged.
It’s a lovely concept for a story with
There are some lovely moments in the book where Liam realises how much his Dad does for him and also how responsible adults have to be but on the whole I felt it wasn’t captivating enough. Cottrell Boyce does make good use of modern technology in this novel (computer games, satellite navigation systems etc) but it was missing something.
It’s a lovely concept for a story with
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a very tall twelve year old Liam mistaken for an adult in every walk of life. It is this that gets him on board a space ship, pretending to be the dad of someone he attends a drama class with. There are some lovely moments in the book where Liam realises how much his Dad does for him and also how responsible adults have to be but on the whole I felt it wasn’t captivating enough. Cottrell Boyce does make good use of modern technology in this novel (computer games, satellite navigation systems etc) but it was missing something.
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LibraryThing member Amabelle
This story is hilarious! I laughed out loud so much!
LibraryThing member mariasegoviano
This is a great book for teenagers that are going through puberty. Anyone who feels out of places for one reason or another will be able to relate to Liam. He feels awkward because he has facial hair and is judged by it because he is so young. He tries to hide his physical features by making
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friends through technology. No one knows how he looks like, he can act like the 12 year old that he is. They accept him for who he is. What i love the most about this book is that Liam becomes some what of a role model and he learns to appreciate his father and values being a kid. Show Less
LibraryThing member 2wonderY
Very funny and heartwarming.
LibraryThing member biarias
This science fiction/fantasy is more than just an entertaining read, it is chock full of meanings, messages, and milestone. Liam's experiences teach him and us not just about the vastness of the universe, but about adulthood, parenthood, and childhood as well. Adults and children are really not all
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that different, and when they are, each quality has its strengths.I think this is an important message for kids to be exposed to, especially because they are too frequently underestimated in the real world. The author also has a fantastic metaphor running throughout the book about World of Warcraft, which is informative and enlightening regardless of the reader's familiarity with the game. Show Less
LibraryThing member Mirandalg14
4.5 stars. A fun story. Just because you look older doesn't mean you should be treated that way.
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
So have you ever felt like a book was trying too hard? That's how I felt about this book, like it was just trying waaay too hard. It was too over the top, required me to suspend belief too much and too often and it tried too hard to be funny. I felt like if some of it had been toned down, I might
Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
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have lived with it but there were just too many too's. Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
So have you ever felt like a book was trying too hard? That's how I felt about this book, like it was just trying waaay too hard. It was too over the top, required me to suspend belief too much and too often and it tried too hard to be funny. I felt like if some of it had been toned down, I might
Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show More
have lived with it but there were just too many too's. Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
So have you ever felt like a book was trying too hard? That's how I felt about this book, like it was just trying waaay too hard. It was too over the top, required me to suspend belief too much and too often and it tried too hard to be funny. I felt like if some of it had been toned down, I might
Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show More
have lived with it but there were just too many too's. Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
So have you ever felt like a book was trying too hard? That's how I felt about this book, like it was just trying waaay too hard. It was too over the top, required me to suspend belief too much and too often and it tried too hard to be funny. I felt like if some of it had been toned down, I might
Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show More
have lived with it but there were just too many too's. Liam is a 12 year old boy that already looks like an adult, in fact he looks old enough to be mistaken for a father. He and his friend Florida, frequently run around pretending to be father and daughter. They don't get into too much trouble with it until Liam wins a contest, that results in him, Florida and three other kids going to the moon. Liam's examination of what a dad is and the analysis of his and the other kids actions was actually really interesting, but so much of this was just so over the top that it was disappointing. I felt like more could have been done with less.
Show Less
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336