Status
Available
Local notes
PB Cam
Collection
Series
Genres
Publication
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (1988), Edition: Reprint, 226 pages
Description
A mystery man inspires two boys to build a space ship which takes them to the planet of Basidium to help the Mushroom people.
Subjects
Awards
Nēnē Award (Nominee — 1965)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1954
Physical description
226 p.; 5.25 inches
User reviews
LibraryThing member amysisson
This is a childhood favorite that I remember checking out multiple times from my elementary school library. Thirty-plus years later, and it still holds up very well for me!
David, an only child, is passing a routine evening at home when his father finds a notice -- printed in green ink! -- in the
My only quibble is the obvious sexism, but I try to remember the time in which it was written. And I don't remember feeling like the book meant that I couldn't dream of such things just because I was a girl. In any case, I think this book is still a natural for kids. It's a bit dated, but still wonderful!
David, an only child, is passing a routine evening at home when his father finds a notice -- printed in green ink! -- in the
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newspaper, advertising for a boy or a couple of boys to build a spaceship for a Very Important Mission. David enlists his best friend, Chuck, and the two are off on an incredible adventure courtesy of the odd but wonderful Mr. Bass.My only quibble is the obvious sexism, but I try to remember the time in which it was written. And I don't remember feeling like the book meant that I couldn't dream of such things just because I was a girl. In any case, I think this book is still a natural for kids. It's a bit dated, but still wonderful!
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LibraryThing member richardderus
It's just not possible to recapture a read from 1969. I was not old enough to know or care about some of the science parts being really, really improbable...nay, impossible...as we had just been to the Moon and had recently landed a probe on Mars that put paid to even the dream of a Universe like
I loved revisiting Dave Topman and Chuck Masterson's flight to the impossible, tiny planet Basidium, all of 50,000 miles away. Their home-made rocket that traveled 25,000 miles an hour. Their bags od groceries to eat on the way there and back...two hours each way...two hours on Basidium, where they somehow spoke the language of the Mushroom People and solved a mystery that confounded the adult Mushroom People...the chicken that saved the day....
Nope, too old to get back there, but it was some good fun peeking back at the boyhood adventure that didn't have to make sense because what the hell actually does when you're eight or nine? It's starting to, but not quite yet does, blessedly.
I would give this to a six-year-old and read it with her. Maybe a slightly slow seven-year-old. No older than that, in today's world, and I'm not all the way sure it's even a good idea because gender roles and sex stereotyping are at the core of the story. So maybe, if like me you read it in your tinyhood, you'll smile and enjoy and keep out of reach of children.
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the one Author Cameron created. I loved revisiting Dave Topman and Chuck Masterson's flight to the impossible, tiny planet Basidium, all of 50,000 miles away. Their home-made rocket that traveled 25,000 miles an hour. Their bags od groceries to eat on the way there and back...two hours each way...two hours on Basidium, where they somehow spoke the language of the Mushroom People and solved a mystery that confounded the adult Mushroom People...the chicken that saved the day....
Nope, too old to get back there, but it was some good fun peeking back at the boyhood adventure that didn't have to make sense because what the hell actually does when you're eight or nine? It's starting to, but not quite yet does, blessedly.
I would give this to a six-year-old and read it with her. Maybe a slightly slow seven-year-old. No older than that, in today's world, and I'm not all the way sure it's even a good idea because gender roles and sex stereotyping are at the core of the story. So maybe, if like me you read it in your tinyhood, you'll smile and enjoy and keep out of reach of children.
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LibraryThing member Crowyhead
This was one of my favorite books as a child. I need to re-read it and find out how it measures up.
LibraryThing member TadAD
I loved this and the sequel, Stowaway to the Mushroom Planet, when I was younger. The third and fourth books were not as good, and the fifth had a very disturbing conclusion.
LibraryThing member angharad
What a delightful old-school novel! (It's old-school because it's old.) Story of some boys who build a spaceship. Includes little green men and pet chicken!
LibraryThing member TRHummer
I read this when I was a boy -- several times -- and just read it to my daughter. Great kid's book. Odd and wonderful.
LibraryThing member wareaglern633
One of my favorite childhood memories reading with my Dad. Full of imagination and fun. What a child's book should be!
LibraryThing member tshrum06
This is a GREAT example of science fiction! It is set in a believable place, but switches to fantasy when the boys start building a spaceship and actually fly it. It's science fiction in that it emphasizes a scientific aspect in the building of the spaceship and being in outer space and in the
The author does a good job of keeping the reader engaged in the plot. Especially with Mr. Bass being so 'mysterious'. The reader doesn't really know what to expect is coming next or if Mr. Bass is real, etc. The plot is well-developed and there are not a lot of gaps. The reader can easily go from chapter to chapter and feel satisfied that they have all the information they need without gaps.
Age Appropriateness: Intermediate, Middle
Media: Pencil
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concept of the Mushroom Planet. The author does a good job of keeping the reader engaged in the plot. Especially with Mr. Bass being so 'mysterious'. The reader doesn't really know what to expect is coming next or if Mr. Bass is real, etc. The plot is well-developed and there are not a lot of gaps. The reader can easily go from chapter to chapter and feel satisfied that they have all the information they need without gaps.
Age Appropriateness: Intermediate, Middle
Media: Pencil
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LibraryThing member June6Bug
I loved this book as a child - I read it over and over again.
LibraryThing member SeriousGrace
It all starts with a green ad in the newspaper, "Wanted: A small spaceship about eight feet long, built by a boy, or by two boys between the ages if eight and eleven..." (p 4). David Topman is just that boy. After reading the advertisement he sets out to build a spaceship with his friend, Chuck
This is a great story that entwines science with fantasy and wild imagination. I am particularly partial to why Mrs. Pennyfeather needed to come along as a mascot.
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Masterson. He and Chuck are about to set off on a wild adventure, one that takes them (and a mascot chicken named Mrs. Pennyfeather) to outer space and the satellite called Basidium-X (the x is for the unknown).This is a great story that entwines science with fantasy and wild imagination. I am particularly partial to why Mrs. Pennyfeather needed to come along as a mascot.
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LibraryThing member adam.currey
I read this book perhaps 40 years ago at the age of about 10, and was enchanted. I remembered it recently and decided to obtain a copy and reread it for the sake of reliving a childhood memory.
Considering that it was written in 1966 for children, it holds up pretty well. That said, it shows its age
I was in two minds about reading this - wanting to relive a childhood memory without spoiling it. I'm glad I did.
Considering that it was written in 1966 for children, it holds up pretty well. That said, it shows its age
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in its sexism (the newspaper advertisement asks for a 'boy' not a 'child') and some hokey 1960's language ('gee willikers!')I was in two minds about reading this - wanting to relive a childhood memory without spoiling it. I'm glad I did.
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LibraryThing member stephkaye
A lovely little story about two boys recruited to build a ship and save the Mushroom Planet. Written by a woman in 1954: why, oh why didn't she make at least one of the adventurers a girl?
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Lexile
1030L
Pages
226