ALL SYSTEMS WHOA

The brilliant Baxter clan returns in another intergalactic outing aboard the Oasis International Space Station.

Abby’s Mami and Papi are renowned scientists on the Oasis, and now that it’s Career Day, Abby feels the pressure to live up to their example. “I don’t know what I want to do when I grow up. I don’t even know what I’m good at,” Abby laments to friends Gracie Chen (who presents Asian) and Dmitry Petrov (depicted as light-skinned and cued as Eastern European), who seem to have their own futures all planned out. As Abby shadows various adults on the space station, learning about what they do, she makes what turn out to be some big mistakes, misplacing a bag of vegetables from the Green Pod and accidentally pressing some buttons in one of the pods. Luckily all ends well, with Abby getting a better sense of what she might like to do as an adult and realizing she doesn’t have to follow in her parents’ footsteps. Loney’s simple but heartfelt story will engage youngsters building their comprehension skills. Takashi’s grayscale artwork brings to life the Oasis, populated by diverse children and adults, and captures a sweetness in relationships between characters, particularly among the Baxters. The book ends with a list of vocabulary words and some information on the International Space Station. Abby and her family are cued as Black and Latine.

Space-themed fun with encouragement for readers wondering about what the future holds.