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How to Survive Without Grown-Ups

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Get set for the new hilarious edge-of-your seat adventure series for readers aged 8+ – this is the perfect new series for fans of Charlie Changes into a Chicken, David Solomons and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy! Highly illustrated throughout by the brilliant Katie Abey.

Eliza and Johnnie’s parents have gone to Mars. Not to the supermarket, not even a trip to the Bahamas. No, they’ve been offered the Chance of a Lifetime and have gone to Mars, the planet, and they’re never coming back. But something doesn’t seem quite right . . .

Taking it upon themselves to save the day, ten-year-old Eliza and her five-year-old genius brother Johnnie manage to cross the Atlantic in an old sofa and navigate their way into outer space. Will they be able to overcome everything that’s thrown at them (including vampire squids, suspicious villains, a secret island and much more)? And – more importantly – will they ever get their parents back?

282 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 19, 2021

5 people are currently reading
39 people want to read

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Larry Hayes

26 books8 followers

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5 stars
40 (40%)
4 stars
32 (32%)
3 stars
24 (24%)
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3 (3%)
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
5 reviews
August 3, 2022
This is one of those books that I picked up randomly, and this turned out to be one of the funniest books that I read in a while. The Jokes are spot on and are funny, Larry Hayes seems to have put so much effort to bring this fun ride to life. 5 stars from me for this awesome fun ride.
Profile Image for Julia Reviews.
100 reviews12 followers
July 18, 2022
This can be laugh-out-loud funny at times, and not your typical story where everything follows the usual route - see the rest at Simply Honest Reviews
Profile Image for Matthew Fox.
Author 2 books25 followers
April 4, 2022
This is a hyper-kinetic whizz-bang adventure ride. It does not pause for breath: the action, the jokes, the reversals are non-stop. It feels like a theme park designed by a 10-year-old (in a good way). It's got everything you could hope for in a adventure story for kids: a sea voyage on a floating sofa, robot monkeys, a secret jungle island, space rockets hurtling towards the planet Mars. Readers of 8 and up will find this thrilling and funny, and will want to watch out for the sequel - in which our heros Eliza and Johnnie get lost in time.
Profile Image for watermelonreads.
470 reviews21 followers
June 24, 2021
For the targeted audience, I can see why they might like this. You never know what’s going to happen. Each page is filled with so much tension and the entire world the author has created is very creative and imaginative.

However, as a adult reader, I find the book hard to visualise. Towards the end, I was skimming over the words. For a mg book, it did get quite bleak at some parts. There’s a couple of mentions about how doomed they are, and suddenly they had this light bulb flicker thingy switched on and they miraculously comes up with a plan. I was quite surprised by how passive the characters are too. Their doggo did a lot of the work for them I was more invested in the villain’s story.

A not bad quick read.
Profile Image for Tim Robinson.
1,085 reviews56 followers
May 28, 2024
I didn't really enjoy the combination of silliness and high technology. Or maybe it was just done in the wrong way. I dunno.
Author 10 books8 followers
August 6, 2022
It is only sometimes that you will come across a book that will take you on a fun ride like this one. This is a good read for anyone who likes to read books full of new worlds and imagination, the author is creative, and knows how to weave a creative world.

I read this book to my young one, he enjoyed this story and asked me to give this one a 5 star.
Profile Image for Mehsi.
15k reviews449 followers
June 12, 2023
A laugh-out-loud book about a Pirate Ship Sofa, a journey to save parents, a dog who can speak dolphin, and many more zany things~


I came across this one on Twitter I believe and was just instantly in love. I needed to read this series! It sounded hilarious. It sounded silly. It sounded right like something I needed!

😍 The MC was such a fun and sweet character and I loved how she and her brother worked together to find their parents. To figure things out. Yes, there are some bumps on the road for these two, and that doesn’t just include vampire squids, but also talking about feelings. There are some arguments, some wrongly chosen words, but I love that they were able to tell how each of them felt. Eliza is average/normal intelligent, and her younger brother is very intelligent. She just feels left behind and also her parents treat her at times like she not special anymore. It doesn’t help that her brother at times makes remarks that she should know something. Haha, which just reminds me of the internet. OH you don’t know x or y, HOW COULD YOU! But I am happy that this event helped them with talking it out and also finding out that you don’t need to be super intelligent to be awesome. Eliza does some amazing things.
😍 While Johnnie was a bit annoying, but you all know how I am with child geniuses, I did like him for most of the book. I loved next to being supersmart you could see that he was also scared, also confused. Unlike many child geniuses I read about, Johnnie was quite human and more a child. And he also has something else going on, with his leg. We see that throughout the story Eliza and Johnnie really have to band together to help each other out.
😍 The cover is just oodles of fun.
😍 Love love the art in the book! It completed the story and made me laugh a lot of times.
😍 The book that Johnnie carried around and how it seemed to have every answer in the world, including to having a debt to ice cream monkeys. Yes. Really.
😍 The cray cray boss of the kids’ parents reminded me of a few other crazy billionaires. 😂 I was also wondering many a times when his eye would just fall out. 😱
😍 That Eliza thought that they wouldn’t be able to do things because hey, you need a vehicle to get somewhere, and then voila pirate sofa. That is all I will say. But it made me laugh so much.
😍 That the doggo was able to talk to dolphins!
😍 The island! I want to explore it myself, it sounds like heaven and oh so many secrets still to explore.
😍 Mom and dad. Before we knew what was going on though I thought they were dicks. But as soon as we found out and saw Johnnie communicate with them, I was OH NO! OH NO NO NO.
😍 That the kids were able to do THAT when things went south. Too many children’s book (and other books) often have no one believing kids, so this made me happy.
😍 That we really went to space! Yep. In a car. Oh, and there is a flying pyramid as well.
😍 Scary robot-technology. Oh dear!
😍 This story just made me laugh so so much, it was such a hoot!
😍 The ending made me smile! Though also a bit worried. And also in need of the next book. Which I still need to do as of writing this one on the 11th of April.

All in all, I could probably continue on and on and on why I loved it, I think you all got it. Now the only thing I want all my readers to do… is buy this book! Go on!

Review first posted https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Profile Image for beckys_book_blog .
570 reviews39 followers
August 19, 2021
This is a fun and crazy Sci Fi adventure story that children will love!

The year is 2053. Ten year old Eliza and her five year old brotherJohnnie (who is also a genius) have been abandoned by their parents who have taken 'a once in a lifetime one way trip to Mars.' But is everything as it seems? Did their mum and dad really want to go or is someone controlling their mind and what they say?

And so begins a rescue trip using a sofa that has been turned into a pirate ship across the Atlantic Ocean. Eliza and Johnnie have to battle vampire squid and centipede biobots along the way. Will they survive and make it in time to rescue their mum and dad?

This is a gripping and humorous book full of tension and impending doom! The illustrations are fantastic and really capture the imaginative storyline and bring it to life.
I really liked the illustrated journalistic fact files dispersed through the story (for example the page from the Book of Secrets. Secret 106: How to Outsmart a Robot and 'The Best Animals To See In a Rainforest.') There is so much happening to hold a young readers interest.

Overall an enjoyable and exciting adventure, perfect for readers aged 8+
Profile Image for Hwee Goh.
Author 22 books25 followers
August 31, 2021
3.8 stars

When the worst thing that can ever happen to you has happened, the good news is there’s nothing left to worry about 🤭😬

It is the year 2053. Eliza and little genius-brother Johnnie wake up to an empty house and a far-too-happy note. Mum and Dad have upped and left on a one-way trip to Mars. It is their “Chance of a Lifetime” and they’re never coming back.

This isn’t the most preposterous of notions because the two kids then go on a madcap chase after their parents involving floating sofas, friendly dolphins and cars in space. Did I mention BIN? A “Brain Interface Node” which a scary bio-bot caterpillar microchips in your brain while you sleep🛌 😴 ?

Fed up with the destruction of Earth by humans themselves, the evil scientist behind all this is trying to send humans against their will and pairs of animals into Mars to build a new world. His name is yes, you guess it, Noah 😛

This improbable tale reads like a continuous ream of sights and sounds, empowering its two characters with this:

“Every child is born to think anything’s possible, but sometimes we forget.”

ARC 📚: Definitely Books (Pansing)
Profile Image for Amy.
49 reviews1 follower
November 11, 2025
Mijn zoontje en ik hebben dit boek samen gelezen — en hij geeft het 4 sterren! 🌟
Zo’n grappig en verrassend avontuurlijk verhaal! De kinderlijke logica, de humor en de creatieve twists maakten het echt een plezier om te lezen — ook als volwassene.

Mijn zoon is 8 jaar (groep 5) en hoewel hij het erg leuk vond, merkte ik dat hij niet alles begreep. De schrijfstijl en het taalgebruik zijn soms wat lastig, dus ik denk dat het boek beter past bij iets oudere kinderen. Het tempo zat er goed in, met veel humor, plottwists en vage, verzonnen dingen. We hebben er samen van genoten.
Profile Image for Jonah Smith.
Author 2 books1 follower
August 6, 2022
My kids like this book, I have ordered separate paperback versions of this book for all three of them as they wanted copies for themselves, will be getting this book as audiobook as well soon. This is a well written book that is packed full of fun and adventure. The twists and turns made this book even better.
Profile Image for Judy.
654 reviews41 followers
September 26, 2023
A really fun fantasy. Very clever way of looking at current important social issues.
I am a Nana who does really enjoy YF and also has the excuse of checking out titles for my suitability for my grandkid
This will be passed on with a huge tick of approval. ✅. Wonderfully horrifying gory and messy and perfectly scary
Profile Image for LudmilaM.
1,192 reviews18 followers
March 27, 2022
Set in a high tech future, this adventure is very inventive and imaginative. Both touching (concerning family and sibling relationship) and a cautionary tale about chipping human brains. Everything can be hacked.
Profile Image for Anita Kirk.
Author 29 books281 followers
August 1, 2022
This book is a total hit with it having me laughing off my seat and it kept the kids happy and entertained, a big well done 5 stars well deserved to the author. I will definitely be picking more books up by this author. Thank you for making our day fun we have not laughed as much in ages.
3 reviews
June 2, 2023
If you like adventure books this is the book for you
13 reviews
August 20, 2023
It was so amazing and adventurous.I loved how funny. It was so nice that I could feel the emotions in my bones
Profile Image for Gabby.
2,514 reviews27 followers
March 13, 2025
Genius parents who disappear and are possibly kidnapped, a genius younger brother who knows everything and a sister with an inferiority complex as well as annoyance towards her brother. So bring on the challenge of saving the parents and learning some big things on the way... including how to confuse a robot icecream serving monkey. Wow that was a sentence I never expected to write.
This was a hillarious occasionally annoying and highly imaginative tale with some really amazing gadgets including a sofa boat. It really is an adventure with a few home truths sprinkled in that hit home more than I expected even as someone outside of the target audience.
Profile Image for Vanessa.
263 reviews3 followers
May 10, 2023
"Es ist Tag fünf, und es sieht nicht gut aus. Du fragst dich wahrscheinlich, was ich hier mache." - 1%

"Wie man ohne Eltern überlebt: Die galaktische Reise auf dem Piratenschiffsofa" sah und klang allein vom Titel und Cover schon so verrückt, dass ich das Buch unbedingt lesen wollte. Nachdem auch die Inhaltsangabe nach einem spannenden und witzigen Abenteuer klang, musste ich das Buch so schnell wie nur möglich lesen.

Eliza und ihr kleiner Bruder Johnny sind fassungslos. Ihre Eltern wollen von heut auf morgen alleine auf den Mars fliegen und kommen nie wieder zurück! Da kann doch irgendwas nicht stimmen und so machen sich Eliza und Johnny auf den Weg, um sie wieder zu sich zurückzuholen. Gemeinsam mit ihrem Hund segeln sie auf einem umgebauten Sofa in ein galaktisches Abenteuer. Doch können sie ihre Eltern retten?

Ich war so gespannt, was mich hier erwartet, dass das Buch nicht lange ungelesen auf meinem Reader war. Der Schreibstil las sich sehr einfach und dadurch auch richtig flüssig, gefiel mir gut und passt zu der Altersempfehlung ab 9 Jahre.

Larry Hayes erzählt die Geschichte im Ich-Erzähler aus der Perspektive von Eliza, die sich gemeinsam mit ihrem jüngeren Bruder auf eine gefährliche galaktische Rettungsmission macht. Eliza und ihr Bruder Johnny gefielen mir richtig gut, die anderen Charaktere fand ich persönlich ehrlich gesagt etwas blass. So wirklich gestört hat mich das nicht, ich wollte es aber trotzdem erwähnen.

Die Story ist spannend, witzig, verrückt und macht einfach nur Spaß. Was Eliza und Johnny auf ihrer Mission alles erleben! Ich musste oft grinsen, es war einfach so unterhaltsam! Der Handlungsverlauf ist spannend und bringt einiges mit sich, die beiden Kinder schlittern von einer abenteuerlichen Situation in die nächste. Manches fand ich persönlich zwar vorhersehbar, ich entspreche allerdings auch nicht der eigentlichen Zielgruppe, weswegen das kein Kritikpunkt ist. Erwähnenswert fand ich es aber trotzdem.
Ich hatte richtig viel Spaß und hoffe, dass das nicht das letzte Abenteuer von den beiden ist. Das Ende lässt nämlich Raum für mehr, wie ich finde.

Im ganzen Buch finden sich immer wieder Illustrationen von Katie Abey, die die Handlung wunderbar unterstreichen und ganz witzig anzuschauen sind. Dadurch hats gleich noch ein bisschen mehr Spaß gemacht.

"Wie man ohne Eltern überlebt: Die galaktische Reise auf dem Piratenschiffsofa" war pure Unterhaltung und brachte einfach richtig viel Spaß. Das galaktische Abenteuer der beiden Geschwister Eliza und Johnny konnte mich sehr überzeugen.
Profile Image for Veronique Pauwels.
272 reviews15 followers
May 2, 2023
Ben je op zoek naar een hilarische graphic novel, waar een fantasierijk avontuur en superleuke droedels je meenemen op een avontuurlijke reis naar Mars? Dan moet je nu dit eerste deel van “ Help waar zijn onze ouders?” snel gaan lezen.
Een aantrekkelijke schreeuwende , spacecover springt onmiddellijk in het oog. De raket die met een kleurrijke regenboogwolk op dat voorblad doorheen de titel scheurt, geven je onmiddelijk het grote probleem weer waar Eliza en haar broertje Johnnie in verzeild geraakt zijn.
Het zal je maar overkomen als je ouders je op een doodgewone dag, je opeens duidelijk maken dat ze vertrekken naar Mars en niet meer terugkomen. De papa staat bekend voor zijn flauwe moppen, maar deze keer lijkt het niet om een grapje te gaan. Maar klopt dit hier allemaal wel? De kinderen zijn ervan overtuigd dat er meer aan de hand is en gaan op onderzoek uit. Zullen ze op tijd hun ouders kunnen tegenhouden?
Wat ze allemaal op hun pad zullen beleven, kan je niet alleen op de achterkant van het boek te weten komen door de korte inhoud te gaan lezen, maar de plezante droedels die je daar vindt, geven je ook al heel wat tips mee.
Eenmaal je binnenin het boek verzeild bent, krijg je al een beeld van dag vijf in Eliza haar verhaal en het ziet er niet zo goed uit. Je krijgt al meteen een beeld door de tekeningen en de gelaatsuitdrukkingen van Eliza dat het bittere ernst was.
Tekst en tekeningen doen je verder meereizen in het verhaal. Voor die lezertjes die het soms moeilijk hebben om hun concentratie erbij te houden is dit boek een echte aanrader. Het spannende verhaal, de tekeningen en droedels van illustrator Katie Abey doen je meereizen in het verhaal. Grappige, hilarische situaties volgen in een sneltempo op.
Larry Hayes, de schrijver heeft ook gebruik gemaakt van korte hoofdstukken waardoor je heel snel van het ene naar het volgende hoofdstuk gaat lezen. Het is heel moeilijk te stoppen na één hoofdstuk. Voor je het weet zit je halfweg het verhaal.
Topverhaal als je het mij vraagt. Ik ben straks benieuwd hoe de kinderen hem zullen vinden. Heb jij deze al gelezen?
Profile Image for Michelle Sims.
476 reviews
November 22, 2022
I listened to the Audiobook version of this through borrowbox. I just wanted a fun middle grade to keep me entertained and I'm in a bit of a reading/time slump so an audio was perfect. This was really fun. Love Eliza as the main character. Some good messages in this and I'd probably read (or listen) to another book by this author.
Profile Image for James.
2 reviews1 follower
January 29, 2023
Brilliant hilarious book. Perfect audiobook for the whole family.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews

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