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Moon Base Alpha #1
Space Case
It’s a murder mystery on the moon in this humorous and suspenseful space adventure from the author of Belly Up and Spy School that The New York Times Book Review called “a delightful and brilliantly constructed middle grade thriller.”
Like his fellow lunarnauts—otherwise known as Moonies—living on Moon Base Alpha, twelve-year-old Dashiell Gibson is famous the world over for being one of the first humans to live on the moon.
And he’s bored out of his mind. Kids aren’t allowed on the lunar surface, meaning they’re trapped inside the tiny moon base with next to nothing to occupy their time—and the only other kid Dash’s age spends all his time hooked into virtual reality games.
Then Moon Base Alpha’s top scientist turns up dead. Dash senses there’s foul play afoot, but no one believes him. Everyone agrees Dr. Holtz went onto the lunar surface without his helmet properly affixed, simple as that. But Dr. Holtz was on the verge of an important new discovery, Dash finds out, and it’s a secret that could change everything for the Moonies—a secret someone just might kill to keep...
Like his fellow lunarnauts—otherwise known as Moonies—living on Moon Base Alpha, twelve-year-old Dashiell Gibson is famous the world over for being one of the first humans to live on the moon.
And he’s bored out of his mind. Kids aren’t allowed on the lunar surface, meaning they’re trapped inside the tiny moon base with next to nothing to occupy their time—and the only other kid Dash’s age spends all his time hooked into virtual reality games.
Then Moon Base Alpha’s top scientist turns up dead. Dash senses there’s foul play afoot, but no one believes him. Everyone agrees Dr. Holtz went onto the lunar surface without his helmet properly affixed, simple as that. But Dr. Holtz was on the verge of an important new discovery, Dash finds out, and it’s a secret that could change everything for the Moonies—a secret someone just might kill to keep...
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First published September 16, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,602 reviews
September 17, 2014
Yes, I'm the author of this book, though I'm not writing a review of it. I'm just pointing out that some of the earliest reviews of 'Space Case' weren't actually reviews at all. They couldn't be, because no one had read the book when they were posted -- except for me and my editor. According to Goodreads, these 'reviews' might be 'readers indicating their desire to read this book,' although since none of them have added text, I don't know if that's true or not. For all I know, they may have simply reviewed this book by mistake. Or maybe they traveled in time to a future where 'Space Case' had already been released, read the book and then came back to post a review, although I have to admit, that's kind of a lame use of time travel. So, anyhow, if you see any reviews here from before April 2014, they're dubious. Anything after that time is most likely someone who got an advanced copy of the book -- or read it after it actually came out. You can trust those. Especially the really, really good ones.
June 22, 2016
Space Case is the first installment in Stuart Gibbs' middle-grade, science fiction series titled: Moon Base Alpha. This was required summer reading for my seventh grader and we decided to do a buddy read together. We both ended up really liking it and my son has already picked up the next book in the series. Some parts of Space Case were a bit slow in my opinion, but overall it was an engaging age-appropriate murder mystery with a surprising little plot twist added in. The "life on the moon" component was especially fun (even for me!). If you have a middle-grade child in your life looking for something new then have them check out this title!
My favorite quote:
"Thoughts are extremely powerful—if you know how to use them right."
The Moon Base Alpha series includes the following installments as of June 2016:
#1-Space Case
#2-Spaced Out
My favorite quote:
"Thoughts are extremely powerful—if you know how to use them right."
The Moon Base Alpha series includes the following installments as of June 2016:
#1-Space Case
#2-Spaced Out
September 13, 2018
Read this a while ago and as thought my 12 year old reluctant reader son might enjoy it but he didn’t want to read it at the time and he just started the 6th grade and brought it home from the library and read it so fast - in a couple of days - he has never done that and he LOVED it . I enjoyed it but will not read the rest of the series and he is already onto book 2 and wants to read all of this authors books - my older son read the Spy School series around this age and LOVED them ❤️
September 16, 2019
Interesting mystery/sci-fi mash up. I'd rate it higher, but I found one part of this book upsetting early on and the creep factor stuck with me as I was reading. When Dash discovers there are cameras everywhere on the moon base (even in the bathrooms) and that his friend Roddy has been hacking into the feed on his personal computer, Roddy says to him, "If you ever want to watch Lily Sjoberg getting ready for the shower, let me know." Dash isn't disturbed by this, as Lily "is certainly the most attractive girl at the base" but is upset because he'd "have to think twice before scratching my rear end from now on, knowing Roddy could be watching." Um...WTF NO. Dear Author and Editors: Thanks for using the term "rear end" instead of "butt" there and really classing up the joint, maybe next time you could throw in a line or two about how violating any girl's privacy while she's using the bathroom is wrong, especially considering it's something sexual predators would do?
February 9, 2019
I read this book to see if my son might like it, and maybe he will, but this is definitely not one of those middle grade books that works for adults, too. The plot is simplistic, the worldbuilding is deeply flawed, and the ending is ... well, bad. (No spoilers here, but: it’s bad, people.)
Dashiell is a 12 year old who lives on the moon, where everything is extremely boring and awful. (And fair play to him: the base sounded claustrophobic and dangerous, plus poorly designed, and it is deeply ridiculous to think that NASA would have allowed children to live there.) But then the base’s doctor dies, and he has a Mystery to Investigate.
Okay, so first, the plot. Mysteries are hard to plot, and maybe Gibbs gets better at it over time, but this one is basically “Dash observes an adult doing something that adult would never do” times 12. There’s not very much there there. The fun of a mystery is in the picking up of clues, and there just ... aren’t very many. And the few puzzles there are are easily solved.
And the worldbuilding is just a straight-up disaster. Going by the date on the documentation in the book, this is set in 2040. Dash is 12. So he’d have been born in 2028, nine years from now, and fourteen years from when this book was published. That’s plenty of time for technology to change (although the only major changes are that most people use smartwatches instead of smartphones, and that VR is considerably better), but not a lot of time for humans to change. And yet humans have changed more than technology. The changes are mostly ridiculous, but the one that really bothered me was the revelation that sign language barely exists, because deafness, blindness, and other disabilities are cured at birth. Even if this was true — and it couldn’t be, given that the description of curing deafness was “giving them a cochlear implant,” which is not just boom! Now the kid is hearing! — there would still be living deaf people, ffs! There would still be a lot of speakers of ASL and other sign langauges! People would still be teaching babies sign!
And despite all this weird, improbable change in humanity, this book is still set in galactic suburbia. There are no queer people. And although all the characters are of various shades of brown, they all live in a whitebread American culture. It’s just frustrating and thoughtless.
Basically, if you want a middle grade mystery, read the Wells and Wong series. This one has the depth of a teaspoon.
Dashiell is a 12 year old who lives on the moon, where everything is extremely boring and awful. (And fair play to him: the base sounded claustrophobic and dangerous, plus poorly designed, and it is deeply ridiculous to think that NASA would have allowed children to live there.) But then the base’s doctor dies, and he has a Mystery to Investigate.
Okay, so first, the plot. Mysteries are hard to plot, and maybe Gibbs gets better at it over time, but this one is basically “Dash observes an adult doing something that adult would never do” times 12. There’s not very much there there. The fun of a mystery is in the picking up of clues, and there just ... aren’t very many. And the few puzzles there are are easily solved.
And the worldbuilding is just a straight-up disaster. Going by the date on the documentation in the book, this is set in 2040. Dash is 12. So he’d have been born in 2028, nine years from now, and fourteen years from when this book was published. That’s plenty of time for technology to change (although the only major changes are that most people use smartwatches instead of smartphones, and that VR is considerably better), but not a lot of time for humans to change. And yet humans have changed more than technology. The changes are mostly ridiculous, but the one that really bothered me was the revelation that sign language barely exists, because deafness, blindness, and other disabilities are cured at birth. Even if this was true — and it couldn’t be, given that the description of curing deafness was “giving them a cochlear implant,” which is not just boom! Now the kid is hearing! — there would still be living deaf people, ffs! There would still be a lot of speakers of ASL and other sign langauges! People would still be teaching babies sign!
And despite all this weird, improbable change in humanity, this book is still set in galactic suburbia. There are no queer people. And although all the characters are of various shades of brown, they all live in a whitebread American culture. It’s just frustrating and thoughtless.
Basically, if you want a middle grade mystery, read the Wells and Wong series. This one has the depth of a teaspoon.
March 21, 2017
One evening, my oldest little, aged 8, came to me with a very serious problem.
They did not have a book that he wanted to read at his school library.
This is indeed a problem that Mom can handle, relish even. Oldest little reads but really only because he knows he's supposed to. The reading love bug just hasn't bitten him yet despite my best efforts to lock him in his room surrounded by precarious stacks of the good stuff. Helping him track down a book at our local library because he wants to read it *immediately* was enough to make me weep with joy.
Of course, there's always more to the story with my little - turns out that the school library did have one copy of this particular book, but the wait list was long...and that his teacher particularly discouraged him from getting on the list because it was above his current reading level.
Dashiell "Dash" Gibson is stuck on Moon Base Alpha with his family - they are some of the fortunate first to inhabit the NASA designed billion dollar base where each family was carefully selected as a unique fit for the bases needs. Dash's parents are one part engineer and one part geologist, both ground breaking in their fields and a two-for-one power couple for what NASA needs on this first space stay. All participants are heavily vetted to be able to handle the unique environment, and things are moving along swimmingly until the beloved base doctor is found dead on the moons surface.
NASA rules the incident a tragic accident, the good doctor being careless with his space suit and breaching protocol. But was it? Dash has his suspicions from the get-go having overheard a phone conversation about a scientific breakthrough that was to be announced in mere hours. Why would the doctor even be on the moon surface with such exciting news ahead, and why alone - an absolute no-no for survival? While Dash's concerns go unheard by most, and are squashed by those that matter, he finds an ally in an unlikely place and after his own adventure, finds the answer.
Overall, I concur with teach on this one. It was above the kiddo's level - this is squarely a an upper middle grade book. But it's a keeper because it's a really good middle grade book. In my personal QUEST to read what my kids read (for loads of reasons), I picked up a kindle version so that I could get cruise through it with him. His independent read turned into a buddy read which turned into me reading to him. He pretty much lost interest about a quarter of the way through, but I finished it knowing that I could encourage him to pick it back up in the future.
Honestly, I can't wait for that day because Dash's adventure is fun and intense. He's surrounded by colorful and interesting characters and has a good little mystery to solve complete with a cute plot twist at the end. For this adult, it wasn't a trudge (as, frankly, they can be. My quest is important but it's not without sacrifice). I really think that the only reason my little lost interest is because I had to stop to explain so many things - like how an airlock functions, what a shill is, and how Mom was silly and pronouncing "Nina the Machina" incorrectly.
Highly recommended and I'm not going to lie, I'm tempted to pick up the sequel, "Spaced Out"...purely for quest purposes, of course.
They did not have a book that he wanted to read at his school library.
This is indeed a problem that Mom can handle, relish even. Oldest little reads but really only because he knows he's supposed to. The reading love bug just hasn't bitten him yet despite my best efforts to lock him in his room surrounded by precarious stacks of the good stuff. Helping him track down a book at our local library because he wants to read it *immediately* was enough to make me weep with joy.
Of course, there's always more to the story with my little - turns out that the school library did have one copy of this particular book, but the wait list was long...and that his teacher particularly discouraged him from getting on the list because it was above his current reading level.
Dashiell "Dash" Gibson is stuck on Moon Base Alpha with his family - they are some of the fortunate first to inhabit the NASA designed billion dollar base where each family was carefully selected as a unique fit for the bases needs. Dash's parents are one part engineer and one part geologist, both ground breaking in their fields and a two-for-one power couple for what NASA needs on this first space stay. All participants are heavily vetted to be able to handle the unique environment, and things are moving along swimmingly until the beloved base doctor is found dead on the moons surface.
NASA rules the incident a tragic accident, the good doctor being careless with his space suit and breaching protocol. But was it? Dash has his suspicions from the get-go having overheard a phone conversation about a scientific breakthrough that was to be announced in mere hours. Why would the doctor even be on the moon surface with such exciting news ahead, and why alone - an absolute no-no for survival? While Dash's concerns go unheard by most, and are squashed by those that matter, he finds an ally in an unlikely place and after his own adventure, finds the answer.
Overall, I concur with teach on this one. It was above the kiddo's level - this is squarely a an upper middle grade book. But it's a keeper because it's a really good middle grade book. In my personal QUEST to read what my kids read (for loads of reasons), I picked up a kindle version so that I could get cruise through it with him. His independent read turned into a buddy read which turned into me reading to him. He pretty much lost interest about a quarter of the way through, but I finished it knowing that I could encourage him to pick it back up in the future.
Honestly, I can't wait for that day because Dash's adventure is fun and intense. He's surrounded by colorful and interesting characters and has a good little mystery to solve complete with a cute plot twist at the end. For this adult, it wasn't a trudge (as, frankly, they can be. My quest is important but it's not without sacrifice). I really think that the only reason my little lost interest is because I had to stop to explain so many things - like how an airlock functions, what a shill is, and how Mom was silly and pronouncing "Nina the Machina" incorrectly.
Highly recommended and I'm not going to lie, I'm tempted to pick up the sequel, "Spaced Out"...purely for quest purposes, of course.
October 22, 2014
This is the second book I have read by this author. Really enjoying these books. The first one I read was Poached. Just like that one, Space Case is a quick read. I get lost in these books (in a good way). All of the characters just jump off teh pages and the storylines are great. However, I have to say that in this book, the mystery surrounding the case is better. It was more serious. Whereas in Poached, I felt like there was no real mystery. In fact, I would call Poached more of a comedy read and Space Case more of a mystery. read. Both really good in their own ways.
Dash is intelligent and does not take no for an answer. These qualities I liked about him. Plus another reason that I really had a fabulous time reading this book more is because I am big into space and aviation. It did feel like I was living up in space with Dash and the rest of the families. I can't wait to read the next book by this author. Space Case is out of this world good reading!
Dash is intelligent and does not take no for an answer. These qualities I liked about him. Plus another reason that I really had a fabulous time reading this book more is because I am big into space and aviation. It did feel like I was living up in space with Dash and the rest of the families. I can't wait to read the next book by this author. Space Case is out of this world good reading!
November 4, 2020
خب من با این کتاب یه سفر چندروزه ای انگار به ماه داشتم
اینقدر که خب تصویر سازی کردم یا کرده بود نویسنده
واینکه کلی چیز هم درمورد ماه فهمیدم با اینکه داستان یه بیست سالی از ما جلوتر بود
و کلی هم علاقه مند به کارکردن تو ناسا شدم اگ قرار باشه همچین قرارگاه فضایی الفایی درکار باشه :))))
درمورد داستان با اینکه وسطای داستان میشه یه حدس هایی زد از اخر داستان ولی اخرش یه سوپرایز واقعی هم داره که کلا باعث میشه پنج ستاره رو همینجوری به این داستان قشنگ بدی
خلاصه که کلی لذت بردم از داستانش
و مشتاقانه منتظرم جلد دو اون رو بخونم
و مشتاقانه تر منتظرم جلد سوم شو نشر پرتقال ترجمه کنه :((
اینقدر که خب تصویر سازی کردم یا کرده بود نویسنده
واینکه کلی چیز هم درمورد ماه فهمیدم با اینکه داستان یه بیست سالی از ما جلوتر بود
و کلی هم علاقه مند به کارکردن تو ناسا شدم اگ قرار باشه همچین قرارگاه فضایی الفایی درکار باشه :))))
درمورد داستان با اینکه وسطای داستان میشه یه حدس هایی زد از اخر داستان ولی اخرش یه سوپرایز واقعی هم داره که کلا باعث میشه پنج ستاره رو همینجوری به این داستان قشنگ بدی
خلاصه که کلی لذت بردم از داستانش
و مشتاقانه منتظرم جلد دو اون رو بخونم
و مشتاقانه تر منتظرم جلد سوم شو نشر پرتقال ترجمه کنه :((
April 23, 2014
I received an advanced copy through my job. This is a cute story. It's a little bit long and drawn out, but a nice little murder mystery for the YA crowd. I enjoyed it.
Also, I love the covers of Stuart Gibbs' books. They are really great and unique. I always know it's one of his books just by the artwork!
Also, I love the covers of Stuart Gibbs' books. They are really great and unique. I always know it's one of his books just by the artwork!
February 10, 2021
When I first saw this book on my book app I thought it might be a cozy mystery for adults and I was little wary that I wouldn't like this as much when I saw it was a middle grade. However I found it maybe even more cozy and a fun adventure in space. A middle grade here and there is a great deal of fun and this is definitely a fun book. Curious about the other books in the series
November 16, 2014
I got this book thinking that even if it was bad, it would still be good, right? You've got a kid who's grumpy about living on the moon, and a murder, and of course the adults will all not investigate for silly adult reasons so it'll be down to our little Junior Sherlock Holmes to suss it out and bring villains to justice. Either it would be genuinely engaging, or so campy as to be a comedy read.
Nope.
I mean, the author ticks all the boxes. The kid's got reasons to be less than enthused about lunar life. The adults do have reasons to avoid investigating the murder that would seem silly to a kid. There are bullies and oblivious younger kids and rules that end up being just hoops for him to jump through while he investigates.
But ugh, what a slow, boring, dreadful read. And worse, it's punctuated by these awkward bits that just kinda make me want to tear the page out before i put this on the shelf just in case my kids want a go at it. Like, say, the extremely unnecessary section where the narrator explains that most everyone is mixed race now, except the rich, obnoxious, malicious tourist family. Not only are the single race (anyone else thinking about mudbloods by now?), but they're statuesque blond-haired blue-eyed Nordic stock (anyone else thinking about the Malfoys by now?).
So yes, i will keep this book just in case my littlings want to read it. But i won't be surprised if the only attention it gets is from dust.
Nope.
I mean, the author ticks all the boxes. The kid's got reasons to be less than enthused about lunar life. The adults do have reasons to avoid investigating the murder that would seem silly to a kid. There are bullies and oblivious younger kids and rules that end up being just hoops for him to jump through while he investigates.
But ugh, what a slow, boring, dreadful read. And worse, it's punctuated by these awkward bits that just kinda make me want to tear the page out before i put this on the shelf just in case my kids want a go at it. Like, say, the extremely unnecessary section where the narrator explains that most everyone is mixed race now, except the rich, obnoxious, malicious tourist family. Not only are the single race (anyone else thinking about mudbloods by now?), but they're statuesque blond-haired blue-eyed Nordic stock (anyone else thinking about the Malfoys by now?).
So yes, i will keep this book just in case my littlings want to read it. But i won't be surprised if the only attention it gets is from dust.
Read
February 7, 2021This book seems sci-fi and unrealistic, but I think that there is a fat chance that something like this would happen in a short time like 2041. Stuart Gibbs thought a lot about the content and the designs of living on the Moon! By writing the storyline, the author also reveals society's corrupted state and unfairness. For example, the story states indirectly that people get more attention, care, and privilege because they are rich, which makes others suffer.
November 6, 2014
I thought that Space Case by Stuart Gibbs was a alright mystery/sci-fi book. I liked the background of the story, it was really interesting. There was good description of the place where they lived. Also, I thought that the author described the characters really well. They had interesting personalities that added to the story. However, there was a lot to not like in this book. For one, the writing was pretty simple and while it had good description, it wasn't very interesting. Also, the mystery wasn't very interesting; it wasn't very deep. I thought that the author dragged out the mystery, there were lots of extra events that didn't add to the story, and I found myself skipping through some of the parts. Overall, there were some very good aspects of Space Case but also some very bad ones.
August 3, 2015
As a bookseller, who loves realistic science fiction, it's hard to find great science fiction titles to recommend to kids. When I was growing up I was often bored with science fiction written for kids. I would have to describe what I read back then more as fantasy then science.
Thank the shelves for Stuart Gibbs! I already recommended many of his books for mystery lovers but now I have my go to for the science fiction loving kid!
I was pulled into the story by both the authenticity of the setting and characters. I was even caught off guard by the ending which doesn't happen a lot. Kind of hoping for a sequel, even though "Space Case" doesn't need one. :)
Thank the shelves for Stuart Gibbs! I already recommended many of his books for mystery lovers but now I have my go to for the science fiction loving kid!
I was pulled into the story by both the authenticity of the setting and characters. I was even caught off guard by the ending which doesn't happen a lot. Kind of hoping for a sequel, even though "Space Case" doesn't need one. :)
May 29, 2018
Found this to be an entertaining audiobook. Despite the small population on the moon, the author was still able to surprise us with the identity of the murderer and there was another fascinating plot twist as well. Having read "Endurance" by Scott Kelly in the past six months, I can vouch for some of the realism incorporated into the descriptions of living in space. Recommended for space lovers and those who dream of living away from planet Earth.
June 6, 2018
this book was weird at the start of the book and it was hard to make connection on who the killer was, but then as the book got started it was easier to make a connection on who the killer is. this book kept you interested and i really enjoyed that. It also kept you interested because there were many dramatic parts of the book that kept you wondering.
June 28, 2023
12-year-old Dash and his parents are among the first human beings from Earth to inhabit the Moon. Unfortunately, as Dash explains, it sounds more interesting than it actually is. That is, until there is a murder to solve! Clever, funny, and fast-paced, this first book in the series can be enjoyed by readers 9 and up.
November 29, 2018
Although it's not a YA book that you can lose yourself in as an adult, I can easily imagine how I'd have enjoyed it at the age of 12, give or take a couple of years. I especially liked the accuracy of its scientific info combined with a rare subtlety that prevents readers from feeling themselves being lectured at.
November 1, 2021
10/24/2021 Buddy read with Jms! Full review tk at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
11/1/2021 My ten year-old brought this home from his school library and recommended I read it, too! Fortunately, he warned me that he hadn't actually finished it when I handed it back to him, else I would have likely dropped some major spoilers, but I could tell him that it was a fun read with at least one surprising twist.
Space Case takes place in a semi-distant future where Lady Gaga is considered an oldies singer and America has built a permanent colony on the moon, with Earth's nations agreeing to treat any of their colonies the way they do their Antarctic ones (a very reasonable solution, IMO.) Dashiell Gibson is one of the lucky first colonists on Moon Base Alpha, or MBA, as it's known. Well, "lucky". He not-so-secretly hates living in such cramped quarters and very much misses his old Hawaii home. But since communiques off-base are strictly censored by NASA in order to keep up appearances, he has to help maintain the whole "perfect kid in a perfect situation" facade. MBA is partially funded by tourist dollars after all, and the last thing NASA needs is for people to see through the cheery advertising and stop sending exorbitant amounts of money their way.
Ofc, all their efforts are for naught when MBA's most prominent scientist, Dr Holtz, takes a long walk out of a short airlock. The official story as promoted by the Moon Base Commander is that Dr Holtz's death was accidental. Trouble is, Dash is pretty sure Dr Holtz was murdered. Just hours before the unplanned moonwalk, Dash had overheard Dr Holtz engaging in an excited conversation about an important announcement he was planning on making in several hours. But before that time could arrive, he was dead.
With the help of several new acquaintances and allies, Dash sets about investigating, uncovering (and solving) along the way more than one mystery plaguing MBA. But the most explosive discovery won't necessarily be what Dash, or anyone else, anticipated.
I really had fun with this sci-fi/mystery novel, and am glad my kid both picked it up and recommended it to me. It presents a reasonable extrapolation of current events into a practical lunar future, from the wry point of view of a young teenager who can see through adult machinations but doesn't yet have much power to do anything about them. The cheery MBA guidelines that intersperse the chapters hilariously underscore the sometimes perilous action, making for a quick, entertaining read that I'm really enjoying discussing with my eldest child.
Space Case by Stuart Gibbs was published September 16 2014 by Simon Schuster Books For Young Readers and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
11/1/2021 My ten year-old brought this home from his school library and recommended I read it, too! Fortunately, he warned me that he hadn't actually finished it when I handed it back to him, else I would have likely dropped some major spoilers, but I could tell him that it was a fun read with at least one surprising twist.
Space Case takes place in a semi-distant future where Lady Gaga is considered an oldies singer and America has built a permanent colony on the moon, with Earth's nations agreeing to treat any of their colonies the way they do their Antarctic ones (a very reasonable solution, IMO.) Dashiell Gibson is one of the lucky first colonists on Moon Base Alpha, or MBA, as it's known. Well, "lucky". He not-so-secretly hates living in such cramped quarters and very much misses his old Hawaii home. But since communiques off-base are strictly censored by NASA in order to keep up appearances, he has to help maintain the whole "perfect kid in a perfect situation" facade. MBA is partially funded by tourist dollars after all, and the last thing NASA needs is for people to see through the cheery advertising and stop sending exorbitant amounts of money their way.
Ofc, all their efforts are for naught when MBA's most prominent scientist, Dr Holtz, takes a long walk out of a short airlock. The official story as promoted by the Moon Base Commander is that Dr Holtz's death was accidental. Trouble is, Dash is pretty sure Dr Holtz was murdered. Just hours before the unplanned moonwalk, Dash had overheard Dr Holtz engaging in an excited conversation about an important announcement he was planning on making in several hours. But before that time could arrive, he was dead.
With the help of several new acquaintances and allies, Dash sets about investigating, uncovering (and solving) along the way more than one mystery plaguing MBA. But the most explosive discovery won't necessarily be what Dash, or anyone else, anticipated.
I really had fun with this sci-fi/mystery novel, and am glad my kid both picked it up and recommended it to me. It presents a reasonable extrapolation of current events into a practical lunar future, from the wry point of view of a young teenager who can see through adult machinations but doesn't yet have much power to do anything about them. The cheery MBA guidelines that intersperse the chapters hilariously underscore the sometimes perilous action, making for a quick, entertaining read that I'm really enjoying discussing with my eldest child.
Space Case by Stuart Gibbs was published September 16 2014 by Simon Schuster Books For Young Readers and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
February 26, 2021
A murder mystery in 2040 on Moon Base Alpha. 12-year-old Dash Gibson, is really bored, cooped up on Moon Base Alpha, with his scientist parents and younger sister. While voiding a horrific meal, he overhears one of the other scientists (Dr. Holtz) speaking excitedly about a big discovery. The next morning, he is found dead, having gone on a moonwalk without securing his spacesuit. Suicide is blamed, but Dash suspects foul play and starts his own investigation over the strident objections of the commander, to a large extent because nobody wants bad publicity for the project. Some excellent storyline twists, with Dash uncovering some simmering resentments. Good for younger readers, especially for those who enjoy kids triumphing over adults.
April 17, 2024
Set on a moon base that is not as fantastic as promised, this novel is full of real insight into what it would be like for children and adults to spend time together in a small space with both hilarious and serious outcomes.
February 2, 2023
I've been exploring books that I could use for a book club for kids and this book was recommended on a lot of lists. I decided to give it a try. It started off alright but went downhill from there. In a word, it was boring.
The book we're reading in book club right now is Masterminds by Gordon Korman and I couldn't help but compare them since they're both sci-fi mysteries. Korman's book is fun and exciting, there's stuff going on, the characters are relatable and fun; Gibbs' book is opposite of that.
Dash and his family are among the first to live on the moon at NASA's extremely expensive Moon Base Alpha. Gibbs, in an effort to be "realistic" I suppose, goes to great pains to emphasize over and over again just how dull and horrible it is to live at "MBA." There are tiny living pods, nightmare shared bathrooms, and lots of rules. The emphasis on how boring MBA was only made the book seem even more boring.
Honestly, Gibbs ignored that most unrealistic thing of all which made the whole book seem false to me - NASA would NEVER allow children on such a dangerous, expensive mission. The beginning of the book even talks about the children breaking things and ruining supplies, which again, is why it's completely impossible to suspend reality and believe children would ever be there.
Dash is stuck on MBA with his scientist parents. Late one night he hears a convo in the potty about a "big discovery." The next day, that scientist is dead. Dash is sure the scientist was murdered, but no one believes him. Zan asks him to help her secretly investigate, and Dash gets Kira, another kid, involved.
As soon as I heard about this big discovery I thought I don't even have the words to express how stupid I found this whole plot.
None of the characters were that likable. They all felt flat and seemed to each be based on one personality trait. Dash is the fun-loving guy, Roddy the slob, Kira the adventurous one, Sjoberg's are the bullies, etc. I also found it weird that Gibbs didn't mention any skin tones until the Sjoberg's then he had a really weird paragraph about how aggressively white they were and how no one is white anymore. It just seemed out of place and strange.
Definitely won't be using this book for a book club. If students were looking for something this specific, I wouldn't mind recommending it, because a lot of people seem to enjoy it. The narration by Gibson Frazier was alright.
The book we're reading in book club right now is Masterminds by Gordon Korman and I couldn't help but compare them since they're both sci-fi mysteries. Korman's book is fun and exciting, there's stuff going on, the characters are relatable and fun; Gibbs' book is opposite of that.
Dash and his family are among the first to live on the moon at NASA's extremely expensive Moon Base Alpha. Gibbs, in an effort to be "realistic" I suppose, goes to great pains to emphasize over and over again just how dull and horrible it is to live at "MBA." There are tiny living pods, nightmare shared bathrooms, and lots of rules. The emphasis on how boring MBA was only made the book seem even more boring.
Honestly, Gibbs ignored that most unrealistic thing of all which made the whole book seem false to me - NASA would NEVER allow children on such a dangerous, expensive mission. The beginning of the book even talks about the children breaking things and ruining supplies, which again, is why it's completely impossible to suspend reality and believe children would ever be there.
Dash is stuck on MBA with his scientist parents. Late one night he hears a convo in the potty about a "big discovery." The next day, that scientist is dead. Dash is sure the scientist was murdered, but no one believes him. Zan asks him to help her secretly investigate, and Dash gets Kira, another kid, involved.
As soon as I heard about this big discovery I thought I don't even have the words to express how stupid I found this whole plot.
None of the characters were that likable. They all felt flat and seemed to each be based on one personality trait. Dash is the fun-loving guy, Roddy the slob, Kira the adventurous one, Sjoberg's are the bullies, etc. I also found it weird that Gibbs didn't mention any skin tones until the Sjoberg's then he had a really weird paragraph about how aggressively white they were and how no one is white anymore. It just seemed out of place and strange.
Definitely won't be using this book for a book club. If students were looking for something this specific, I wouldn't mind recommending it, because a lot of people seem to enjoy it. The narration by Gibson Frazier was alright.
March 6, 2015
Twelve-year-old Dashiell and his family are some of the first people to ever live on the moon. Sounds amazing, right? Not according to Dash. He thinks life at Moon Base Alpha... kind of sucks. There's the uncomfortable inflatable beds and chairs (regular furniture is too heavy to transport), the terrible rehydrated food (no fire for cooking allowed), and don't even get him started on the toilets. Plus, in such a small space with so many restrictions for kids, there's nothing to do. All that changes, however, when one of MBA's residents turns up dead, and even though no one else believes him, Dash is pretty sure it wasn't an accident. Soon Dash is investigating the moon's first ever murder mystery, but someone is determined to stop him - by any means necessary.
I really enjoyed this book and its view of what life on the moon would REALLY be like for a tween. According to the Acknowledgements, the author consulted a good friend who is a former astronaut, so hopefully a lot of the info about the space program is at least based on truth. I found some aspects of the future as described here to be a little questionable, such as the idea that all disabilities are fixed so that there are no disabled people left on earth. But other aspects of the future I thought were really interesting, like the dominance of smart watches and virtual reality and the fact that the vast majority of children are mixed race. The murder mystery in the book is exciting and well-paced, and even after the perp is revealed, there's a pretty amazing discovery.
I would recommend this book to grades 4-8, especially fans of space travel, science fiction, and/or mysteries. I think this should appeal equally to boys and girls. Readalikes might include other books by Stuart Gibbs like Belly Up and Spy School, other mystery/adventures like Capture the Flag by Kate Messner, or other space-themed middle grade novels like Life on Mars by Jennifer Brown. I would also recommend How Do You Burp in Space? by Susan E. Goodman as a great nonfiction readalike.
I really enjoyed this book and its view of what life on the moon would REALLY be like for a tween. According to the Acknowledgements, the author consulted a good friend who is a former astronaut, so hopefully a lot of the info about the space program is at least based on truth. I found some aspects of the future as described here to be a little questionable, such as the idea that all disabilities are fixed so that there are no disabled people left on earth. But other aspects of the future I thought were really interesting, like the dominance of smart watches and virtual reality and the fact that the vast majority of children are mixed race. The murder mystery in the book is exciting and well-paced, and even after the perp is revealed, there's a pretty amazing discovery.
I would recommend this book to grades 4-8, especially fans of space travel, science fiction, and/or mysteries. I think this should appeal equally to boys and girls. Readalikes might include other books by Stuart Gibbs like Belly Up and Spy School, other mystery/adventures like Capture the Flag by Kate Messner, or other space-themed middle grade novels like Life on Mars by Jennifer Brown. I would also recommend How Do You Burp in Space? by Susan E. Goodman as a great nonfiction readalike.
Read
September 7, 2018Full of humor. Always makes the reader surprised!
August 13, 2020
Condoning having cameras in the bathroom so boys can spy on girls taking showers is highly inappropriate. Not the message to be sending to 8-12 year olds.
June 4, 2021
Stuart Gibbs is popular for a reason. Spacecase is a murder mystery I would recommend to anyone, especially young boys as the protagonist is a middle-schooler who happens to be one of the first humans to live on the moon and doesn’t believe that the death of one of the scientists on the moon base was an accident. It has all the ingredients of a good detective story (red herrings, clue gathering, and an exciting conclusion) and it’s told in simple prose.
It’s also an apropos story for those of us who may still be frustrated by all of the covid restrictions...the main character is frustrated by every day life on the moon base (it’s small, there aren’t many people his age to hang out with, and he really misses exploring outdoors). Throughout the book, the protagonist attempts to make the best of the situation and ends up finding interesting ways to occupy his time... like solving a space murder :)
It’s also an apropos story for those of us who may still be frustrated by all of the covid restrictions...the main character is frustrated by every day life on the moon base (it’s small, there aren’t many people his age to hang out with, and he really misses exploring outdoors). Throughout the book, the protagonist attempts to make the best of the situation and ends up finding interesting ways to occupy his time... like solving a space murder :)
March 24, 2017
This book was good
February 3, 2018
WARNING: Review contains mild spoilers.
Perhaps it's unfair to compare this book to Artemis, another crime-caper-on-the-moon novel that came out last year. After all, this is a novel aimed at younger readers, while "Artemis" is adult fare. And the author of "Space Case" probably doesn't intend anyone to take his book seriously. I can appreciate all this. However... even reading "Space Case" for what it is -- a kid's novel about a mystery set in a moon base -- it's a pretty lackluster read. Its main character is whiny and obnoxious, the story plods along at a slow pace, the writing is lackluster, and revelations toward the end come straight out of nowhere.
Dashiell Gibson is the son of two scientists, and one of the first humans to live on the moon. It's not as exciting as it sounds -- the moon base is tiny and cramped, the food is awful, and there's little to do beyond sending (heavily censored) messages home and playing virtual reality games. But when a prominent scientist winds up dead -- and Dash might have been the last person to see him alive -- things suddenly get very interesting. And though he's warned by the leader of the space station to keep his nose out of things, Dash can't resist investigating the suspicious death. After all, what else is there to do on the moon? But the dead scientist might not be the only person on the station who's keeping secrets, and someone is bound and determined to ensure Dash stays out of the investigation... even if it means Dash's life...
Don't go into this book expecting "Artemis" for kids -- while Andy Weir made the space station in his novel a veritable city on the moon, with plenty of wonder and excitement to balance out the complications of living on the moon, Stuart Gibbs seems bound and determined to hammer home to his readers that living on the moon is no picnic. And our main character will not let you forget it -- not a page goes by where he isn't complaining about some aspect of life on the moon. Whether it's the bad food, the cramped quarters, the restrictive rules, the lack of activities for kids, or anything else, Dash doesn't hesitate to whine and complain. I can understand that space travel and life is not comfortable -- ask any astronaut -- but nobody wants to read page after page of a character whining. Surely there must be something good about living on the moon... but nope, apparently it's terrible.
The story itself isn't very interesting either. Dash doesn't so much as find clues as he has them dumped into his lap. A few interesting angles are brought up, but then quickly abandoned -- one of the base's engineers turning out to be a spy, for example, comes up once and is promptly forgotten. And while several intriguing suspects are brought up throughout the course of the story, the identity and motivation of the killer ends up springing up out of nowhere toward the end. It felt completely unforeshadowed and left me going "wait, seriously? That's it?"
A couple other reviewers have brought this up, but it bears repeating -- the most unpleasant characters in this book are white. I'm not saying that antagonists or unpleasant characters in general can't be white, but the book makes a huge point out of saying that practically everyone on the moon base is either a person of color or multi-racial, while the nasty and arrogant tourist family living aboard the station is white as white can be. And when these characters are not only the most unpleasant characters in the book (even more so than the eventual killer) but have absolutely no redeeming qualities and no characterization beyond "snobby and nasty-tempered rich folks," I have a problem. (And yes, racism against white people does exist -- it may not be as deeply entrenched in our society as racism against people of color, but it exists, as this book proves...)
Adults looking for a good "mystery in space" novel are advised to pick up Andy Weir's Artemis or Robert Sawyer's Red Planet Blues instead of this novel. As for kids... I can't see even kids enjoying this novel, as the main character is so whiny he's difficult to sympathize with. The science is well-thought out (though wouldn't the base be more careful about allowing lunar dust inside?) and the "Welcome to Moon Base" manual snippets interspersed throughout were interesting, but otherwise this is an ultimately lackluster and insufferable book.
Perhaps it's unfair to compare this book to Artemis, another crime-caper-on-the-moon novel that came out last year. After all, this is a novel aimed at younger readers, while "Artemis" is adult fare. And the author of "Space Case" probably doesn't intend anyone to take his book seriously. I can appreciate all this. However... even reading "Space Case" for what it is -- a kid's novel about a mystery set in a moon base -- it's a pretty lackluster read. Its main character is whiny and obnoxious, the story plods along at a slow pace, the writing is lackluster, and revelations toward the end come straight out of nowhere.
Dashiell Gibson is the son of two scientists, and one of the first humans to live on the moon. It's not as exciting as it sounds -- the moon base is tiny and cramped, the food is awful, and there's little to do beyond sending (heavily censored) messages home and playing virtual reality games. But when a prominent scientist winds up dead -- and Dash might have been the last person to see him alive -- things suddenly get very interesting. And though he's warned by the leader of the space station to keep his nose out of things, Dash can't resist investigating the suspicious death. After all, what else is there to do on the moon? But the dead scientist might not be the only person on the station who's keeping secrets, and someone is bound and determined to ensure Dash stays out of the investigation... even if it means Dash's life...
Don't go into this book expecting "Artemis" for kids -- while Andy Weir made the space station in his novel a veritable city on the moon, with plenty of wonder and excitement to balance out the complications of living on the moon, Stuart Gibbs seems bound and determined to hammer home to his readers that living on the moon is no picnic. And our main character will not let you forget it -- not a page goes by where he isn't complaining about some aspect of life on the moon. Whether it's the bad food, the cramped quarters, the restrictive rules, the lack of activities for kids, or anything else, Dash doesn't hesitate to whine and complain. I can understand that space travel and life is not comfortable -- ask any astronaut -- but nobody wants to read page after page of a character whining. Surely there must be something good about living on the moon... but nope, apparently it's terrible.
The story itself isn't very interesting either. Dash doesn't so much as find clues as he has them dumped into his lap. A few interesting angles are brought up, but then quickly abandoned -- one of the base's engineers turning out to be a spy, for example, comes up once and is promptly forgotten. And while several intriguing suspects are brought up throughout the course of the story, the identity and motivation of the killer ends up springing up out of nowhere toward the end. It felt completely unforeshadowed and left me going "wait, seriously? That's it?"
A couple other reviewers have brought this up, but it bears repeating -- the most unpleasant characters in this book are white. I'm not saying that antagonists or unpleasant characters in general can't be white, but the book makes a huge point out of saying that practically everyone on the moon base is either a person of color or multi-racial, while the nasty and arrogant tourist family living aboard the station is white as white can be. And when these characters are not only the most unpleasant characters in the book (even more so than the eventual killer) but have absolutely no redeeming qualities and no characterization beyond "snobby and nasty-tempered rich folks," I have a problem. (And yes, racism against white people does exist -- it may not be as deeply entrenched in our society as racism against people of color, but it exists, as this book proves...)
Adults looking for a good "mystery in space" novel are advised to pick up Andy Weir's Artemis or Robert Sawyer's Red Planet Blues instead of this novel. As for kids... I can't see even kids enjoying this novel, as the main character is so whiny he's difficult to sympathize with. The science is well-thought out (though wouldn't the base be more careful about allowing lunar dust inside?) and the "Welcome to Moon Base" manual snippets interspersed throughout were interesting, but otherwise this is an ultimately lackluster and insufferable book.
December 10, 2020
I was SO pleasantly surprised by this book! I am not generally a mystery reader but this one really held my attention, and I was shocked by the twist at the end, and definitely want to read the next book.
I did have some questions about the year that the book is set in. It was written in 2014 and set in 2040, but I felt like it should have been set in 2150 or something. I do not think, for example, that by 2040 we will be able to "cure" deafness, and sign language will not be some archaic form of communication. (Quotations because I do not think that deafness is something that *needs* to be cured, Deaf culture is a very real and thriving thing). I also do not think that caucasian people will be like, a rare and exotic thing. Dash says the Sjobergs are the only "pure white" people he's ever seen, but unless literally everyone starts marrying outside their race in the next 20 years, that was such a strange thing to insert into this story. I felt like it kind of took away from the natural diversity of the rest of the cast. Now, 150-200 years from now, sure, I do think humanity will be much more ethnically diverse. But little weird things like that took me out of the story. Maybe they wouldn't bother a kid as much though. I'll have to ask my book club kids tomorrow!
I did have some questions about the year that the book is set in. It was written in 2014 and set in 2040, but I felt like it should have been set in 2150 or something. I do not think, for example, that by 2040 we will be able to "cure" deafness, and sign language will not be some archaic form of communication. (Quotations because I do not think that deafness is something that *needs* to be cured, Deaf culture is a very real and thriving thing). I also do not think that caucasian people will be like, a rare and exotic thing. Dash says the Sjobergs are the only "pure white" people he's ever seen, but unless literally everyone starts marrying outside their race in the next 20 years, that was such a strange thing to insert into this story. I felt like it kind of took away from the natural diversity of the rest of the cast. Now, 150-200 years from now, sure, I do think humanity will be much more ethnically diverse. But little weird things like that took me out of the story. Maybe they wouldn't bother a kid as much though. I'll have to ask my book club kids tomorrow!
December 11, 2014
Originally posted here at Random Musings of a Bibliophile.
It is sad that Space Case by Stuart Gibbs didn't get a better cover. I can seeing it getting skipped over without a second glance, and that would just be sad because it is actually a fun science-ficition murder mystery.
Dash Gibson is a "Moonie" one of the first residences on the moon. His parents are both scientists working on the space station there. The government lured their family there with promises of adventure and historic fame. They would be pioneers. Dash feels hoodwinked. Life on the moon is not nearly as exciting as it sounds, and is uncomfortable to boot. Dash wants nothing more than to return to his life in Hawaii. He misses his friends, the ocean, having toilets that flush normally, and fresh food. But things in the space station become more interesting when one the resident doctor dies while on an unauthorized moonwalk. Dash immediately suspects foul play. He overheard a conversation the doctor had the night before where he was excited to reveal a recent discover. Dash's concerns are smoothed over and he is told to keep quiet until a mysterious security official approaches him in secret and asks for help investigating. Soon Dash is convinced he's right about the doctor's death being murder. Unfortunately Dash's investigations have attracted to notice of exactly the wrong person.
This is an interesting sci-fi twist on the murder mystery at a house party story. The inhabitants of the space station are trapped. There is nowhere for them to go. A murderer on the loose is definitely not a comforting though. This is why so many people want to silence Dash. The actual investigation is one I found to be highly probable. I can see the Dash and his friends being able to do the things they did in this story and follow the clues to their outcome. I also felt that the scientific aspects were well done and what I imagine would be possible in the not too distant future. I liked how sterile and uncomfortable life on the moon was because that's also realistic.
Dash is a great hero. He is smart, sarcastic, and willing to take risks. At the same time, he is a typical kid, one who is just learning that he doesn't always want to go along with what the adults have to say. He has a quiet rebellion beginning to stir in him that the target audience for this book will be able to identify with. As a result of living on the moon, he does have a fair amount of independence and maturity, but his parents are very much all up in his business all the time. Typically in stories like this, parents are conveniently shuffled to the side. Not so in this book. Dash is tripping over his constantly. I liked that. We are seeing more involved and engaged parents show up in MG speculative fiction and that's a trend that needs to continue. Dash's closest ally in his investigations is a newcomer his age named Kira. She is the perfect foil for Dash. Adventurous, a boundary pusher, definitely not tripping over her father at every turn, she is a lot of things Dash isn't and they balance each other well.
I do hope that there are going to be more of these. Good murder mysteries for MG readers are a hard find, and this one is delightful.
It is sad that Space Case by Stuart Gibbs didn't get a better cover. I can seeing it getting skipped over without a second glance, and that would just be sad because it is actually a fun science-ficition murder mystery.
Dash Gibson is a "Moonie" one of the first residences on the moon. His parents are both scientists working on the space station there. The government lured their family there with promises of adventure and historic fame. They would be pioneers. Dash feels hoodwinked. Life on the moon is not nearly as exciting as it sounds, and is uncomfortable to boot. Dash wants nothing more than to return to his life in Hawaii. He misses his friends, the ocean, having toilets that flush normally, and fresh food. But things in the space station become more interesting when one the resident doctor dies while on an unauthorized moonwalk. Dash immediately suspects foul play. He overheard a conversation the doctor had the night before where he was excited to reveal a recent discover. Dash's concerns are smoothed over and he is told to keep quiet until a mysterious security official approaches him in secret and asks for help investigating. Soon Dash is convinced he's right about the doctor's death being murder. Unfortunately Dash's investigations have attracted to notice of exactly the wrong person.
This is an interesting sci-fi twist on the murder mystery at a house party story. The inhabitants of the space station are trapped. There is nowhere for them to go. A murderer on the loose is definitely not a comforting though. This is why so many people want to silence Dash. The actual investigation is one I found to be highly probable. I can see the Dash and his friends being able to do the things they did in this story and follow the clues to their outcome. I also felt that the scientific aspects were well done and what I imagine would be possible in the not too distant future. I liked how sterile and uncomfortable life on the moon was because that's also realistic.
Dash is a great hero. He is smart, sarcastic, and willing to take risks. At the same time, he is a typical kid, one who is just learning that he doesn't always want to go along with what the adults have to say. He has a quiet rebellion beginning to stir in him that the target audience for this book will be able to identify with. As a result of living on the moon, he does have a fair amount of independence and maturity, but his parents are very much all up in his business all the time. Typically in stories like this, parents are conveniently shuffled to the side. Not so in this book. Dash is tripping over his constantly. I liked that. We are seeing more involved and engaged parents show up in MG speculative fiction and that's a trend that needs to continue. Dash's closest ally in his investigations is a newcomer his age named Kira. She is the perfect foil for Dash. Adventurous, a boundary pusher, definitely not tripping over her father at every turn, she is a lot of things Dash isn't and they balance each other well.
I do hope that there are going to be more of these. Good murder mysteries for MG readers are a hard find, and this one is delightful.
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