Mars Needs Moms

by Berkeley Breathed

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Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Science Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Space, Fantasy

Unknown Binding

First published April 10, 2007

About the author

Guy Berkeley "Berke" Breathed is an American cartoonist, children's book author/illustrator, director, and screenwriter, best known for Bloom County, a 1980s cartoon-comic strip which dealt with socio-political issues as seen through the eyes of highly exaggerated characters (e.g. Bill the Cat and Opus the Penguin) and humorous analogies.

Reviews

[Eli · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really did not like this book. However, I have to start by acknowledging the fantastic illustrations (If I could rate them separately, I'd give the illustrations 4 stars and the story 1).

Onward to the plot.

The protagonist is a little boy who can't stand his mother and sees her as a nagging tyrant out to ruin his life. One day she is kidnapped by martians seeking moms for their motherless planet. The boy follows the martians and ends up almost dying in the unfavorable martian atmosphere. His mother finds him and sacrifices her own life to save him, though thankfully she ends up being rescued at the last minute by the aliens. In the end, he comes to realize that he loves (?) his mother. Or rather, that he appreciates her in terms of what she can do for him.

So the basic plot is cute and good - no issues there. My problem comes with the treatment of moms. In Breathed's story, the value of a mom is solely to serve their child. The kid comes to "value" his mom because she drives him places and does thing FOR him. According to all the reasons given for why a mom has any worth, a working mom would be 100% equal to a nanny or day-care provider.

If the kid had come to realize his mom had value because of how much she loved him (and he her), how they did things together, how much she cared for him, etc., I would have really liked the book. As is, I just can't stand how he ties a woman's worth to being, for all intents and purposes, an indentured servants to her kids.

[Tiuri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This toes the line between vulgar and cute and ends up directly in between. On one hand Milo’s fit (and the sometimes gross artwork) is horrendous, and on the other, the mother’s sacrifice and love are beautiful. That poor mom! “I’ll love you to the end of the universe.” The ending squeezes your heart. But I think moms everywhere, like me, won’t enjoy seeing themselves vilified by the little boy for most of the picture book.

[Gabriela Alvarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Berkeley Breathed's Golden Duck Award Book, "Mars Needs Moms!" is a captivating and amusing science fiction story about an 8-10 yr old dissatisfied boy, who didn't realize how special mothers were, until his got kidnapped! Milo thought mothers were thundering, humorless tyrants, who were broccoli bullies, slave-driving, trash mashing, and rubbish odor ogres. He saw absolutely nothing special in that. However, not everyone thought about mothers this way. One night, Martian raiders came to kidnap what they considered marvelous treasure, something that could never be found on Mars-moms! As the spaceship took off with his mother, Milo snuck in and borrowed a spare space helmet. Once they arrived at this red planet called Mars, Milo learned why Martians wanted mothers so bad. He decided to go tell them, when suddenly he tripped, and his helmet broke into pieces leaving him gasping for air and feeling faint. Just as everything was feeling dark, something happened that made Milo realize why mothers were so special. Milo's mom sacrificed her own helmet to give him life again. She wasn't a tyrant or a broccoli bully, but a mother who showed she loved him to the end of the universe. This story ends with a warm and heart-felt happy ending where a young boy finally learns to appreciate his mother and realizes how special she really is.

The capturing, three dimensional illustrations were created with virtual acrylics and virtual water color on a 100% rag archival virtual illustration board. Starting from the front cover of the book, the illustration shows a tender and sweet picture of a mother holding her child, and you could sense the love, protection, and connection between the mother and child. The cartoon-like illustrations give a lot of emotion to the characters in the story, from funny faces, to angry, worried, sad, and happy facial expressions, adding life to the story.

I think this book is appropriate for children in K-3rd grade and they would really enjoy this story. I think they would be able to relate how they don't always like everything mothers want them to do, but I think that at the end of the story, they will agree that indeed mothers are special, and there is so much to appreciate about them. Another theme it made me think about was that often, if we don't value what we have, others will, and sometimes we realize how valuable something or someone is until it's too late. I think children as well as adults can learn a lesson from this story, and I must admit, I almost cried when I thought Milo had lost his mother. This is a book I would add not only to my classroom, but my home library as well.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this 2008 Golden Duck award winner. The illustrations are wonderful and have so much emotion and detail in them, it's impossible not to understand the feelings of the characters.

This is the story of a little boy who doesn't understand what's so special about mothers. They're "giant, summer-stealing, child-working, perfumy garden goblins," and "bellowing broccoli bullies and carrot-cuddling cuckoos." Then one night, his mother is abducted by Martians and taken to their planet. The little boy hitches a ride on the spaceship, and in the end, he figures out what is so special about moms.

This book would be great to use in any K-5 classroom. One person suggested using it as a book to read for Mother's Day which I think would be a great idea. It would be a fun way to get little ones to think about their mom in different ways. With older students, other than simply enjoying the story and illustrations, I would use it as a mentor text for teaching voice. It is so easy to hear this little boy telling the story as you read it to yourself.

Although there are some stereotypes used to describe the mom and what she does in the house, I think that children sometimes see moms in that same light. Things are pretty black and white to small children, which is clearly seen in this story.

[Denise Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book 1,000,000 times to my son and a few times at the library that at I worked to the children there. Often times the children don’t understand the true impact of the book as much as an adult. But they still do enjoy it. Almost every time I read it I cry. Last night when I read it to my son, some thing got through to him and I could see the impact start to get through. He loves his mama so much, and I can see that in the concern he had for what he was hearing from the book.

[Ham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can see why this was made into a movie.
It's a deceptively simple book full of powerful emotion.
How powerful?
I got teary both times I read it to my kids.
Yeah, I'm a mamma's boy, what of it?
I told my wife that I cried and she laughed at me.
Obviously her relationship with her mother needs work.

[Stacy Natal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story about a boy that doesn't appreciate his mom until she is kidnapped by Martians. Cool illustrations, some tough vocab for my ELL students.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This picture book was a 2008 Golden Duck Award winner. It’s the story of a young boy named Milo who thinks moms have no redeeming qualities. They’re broccoli bullies, ogres, humorless tyrants, etc., etc., etc. One night, Milo has a dream that his mother gets kidnapped by a Martian spaceship, because Mars needs moms to do all the things they (moms) do on Earth. You see, Martians grow from the ground like vegetables, so they don’t have mothers of their own, which is why Earth moms are needed. Milo secretly hitches a ride on the spaceship, and witnesses all the things his mom does for Martians. Things go awry for Milo on Mars, and in an effort to save him, his mother almost dies. As a result, Milo develops a newfound love and appreciation for her.
I must say, I wasn’t overly fond of the book. Although the digital illustrations seem perfectly appropriate for the story, they weren’t very appealing to me. Also, both Milo and his mother seem a bit too one-dimensional. Before going to Mars, all we know of Milo were his constant complaints and tantrums. Mother was only viewed through his eyes, so no endearing qualities were apparent in her. I don’t strongly dislike the book, and I actually think young children might enjoy it.

I also viewed this as a DVD movie.Although the movie has the same basic story line, it’s significantly different than the book. In the book, Milo appears to be about 3 years old, but in the movie he’s much older. The movie is about 80 minutes long, so understandably, a more elaborate plot had to occur than what exists in a 40 page picture book. The majority of the movie is about Milo’s experiences on Mars as he tries to find his mother. He becomes involved with characters (human and Martians) along his journey and must overcome many dangerous and threatening situations on his way. His mother’s experiences on Mars are hardly a part of the story. I didn’t like this movie at all, and found it hard to watch. It’s digitally animated, but none of the characters were very endearing. Also, it’s a very loud movie – lots of yelling, which I find very annoying. There are so many wonderful animated fantasy and science fiction movies to choose from for children, I don’t recommend this one at all.

[L12 _Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

On Mars, there are no mothers. No mothers to cook, clean, or carpool, no mothers to bake, bandage, or baby you, no mother to kiss you, miss you, or even discipline you. And so the Martians have been watching, waiting, and planning. And there's one little boy who cannot for the love of Mike figure out what's good about his mother. She a "bellowing broccoli bully" and a "slave-driving, trash-mashing, rubbish odor ogre." Milo cannot possibly imagine what's so special about her. And after one especially trying afternoon (from both of their perspectives), he tells her so.

Much to Milo's surprise, that night the Martians arrive and decide to take his mother back for their own. He takes off after them, finding himself aboard their ship, where he dons a helmet and waits to arrive on Mars. Upon landing, he tumbles down the gangway, and he makes it just fine, but the helmet doesn't. And so it comes to pass that one little boy, in one quick instant, realizes exactly what makes mothers so special.

Author and illustrator, Berkeley Breathed has,in this mother's eye, conceived an amazing book. The illustrations alone show the progression of this ugly "bellowing broccoli bully' into a beautiful Adonis like creature. He has created with words and illustrations a true love story between a mother and her son.

This picture book be used with all grade levels, but best with K-5. Could be used as a thematic book for Mother's Day or as a great hook for curriculum lesson on planets.

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ages 4-10
2008 Golden Duck Award Winner
Although I am not usually a fan of digital artwork, there was something undeniably charming and funny about these images. Berkeley Breathed creates appropriately surreal settings on Earth and on Mars. I especially like the juxtaposition of the computer generated drawings and the pared down black and white sketches. The fantastic visual quality of this book was, for me, soured by the one-dimensional, stereotypical portrayal of the mother. Curlers in her hair? Come on. I agree that the unappreciative child's names for his mother are hilarious-"perfumy garden goblins" and "broccoli bullies"-but I wish that before his mother saves his life on Mars and he nearly loses her for good, finally realizing her value (which, realistically, may or may not really happen until sometime in his twenties), I wish she was portrayed as more than a nagging, chauffeuring, boo-boo bandager. Yes, it is true that most mothers will love their children "to the ends of the universe," but their value extends beyond that. That being said, my kids loved the soon-to-be animated feature film story.

[Tressa · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son wants to see this movie, and his dad found this book when they were at a used bookstore. This is a book I enjoyed reading to my son so he can see that moms force their offspring to do terrible things like wash their hands and eat their veggies because they love them. I might have to make this a night read until it sinks in. :-)

[H · Rating 5 out of 5]

what a great story. Makes me cry. My son wonders why I always cry when I read him this one. LOL

[Oksana · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is not a poem, but the author uses alliteration in almost every sentence so the book reads as an epic poem. Here is the example of a clever use of alliteration to describe mothers: “bellowing broccoli bullies” and “carrot-cuddling cuckoos.” He also uses short sentences to convey the main character’s train of thought.
The marvelous illustrations for this book were perceived by my children as a little bit “creepy.” The illustrator uses the juxtaposition of the computer generated drawings and the pared down black and white sketches on the same page spread. The effect is that the pages don’t look so busy, and the reader can focus on one picture at a time without the distraction of multicolored scheme. The extra details that the illustrator puts into the pictures help children who cannot read to extract additional information about the story and determine the mood of the main character. For example, the portraits on the wall look at the boy who is forced to eat his vegetables with disgust and contempt. Or the bait for catching mothers that the Martians set is a cup of Starbucks coffee. I will definitely fall for it. These details make the book more entertaining, and encourage children to look for these “Easter Eggs.”
The illustrations cleverly show the progression of Milo’s perception of his mother as a controlling tyrant to a loving selfless person. The image of the mother in the beginning of the book is vague and distorted, until she comes into the full view when Milo realizes that she has just sacrificed her life for him.
It is one of the children books that we never gave away!

[Sydney Nelson]

“Mars Needs Moms!” is Science Fiction because it is a made-up story that involves Martians and going to Mars on a spaceship. The story begins with Milo, the main character, wondering what makes mothers so special. All he can think of that they do are things like make their kids eat vegetables and take out the trash and then one day Milo partakes in “sister-tinting.” His mom doesn’t find this very funny and he is sent to his room, where he falls asleep. When he wakes up, he sees his mother being taken by three Martians, so he follows them and ends up on their ship, which goes to Mars. When Milo gets off the ship, he sees a ton of motherless Martian children, which explains why they were stealing mothers from Earth. Milo falls and cracks his helmet, but his mother quickly covers his head with her own helmet, and right then Milo understands what is so special about mothers. I would recommend this book because it is a sweet, but humorous story that shows appreciation for mothers and their unconditional love. My only issue with the story was that the Martians needed the moms to fulfill traditional gender roles such as cleaning, cooking and taking care of the children, but it is still a fun story nonetheless.

[Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew Berkeley Breathed from his comic Bloom County, which I rather enjoyed. If you are unfamiliar with it, lets just say it wasn't the most reverent of comics. So I came away fromMars Needs Moms both not surprised and surprised. I wasn't surprised about the very blunt and disrespectful way that Breathed had his main character describe moms in the beginning, nor was I surprised at the over the top stereotypical illustrations (especially the ones found on pages 14 and 15. I was however pleasantly surprised at the story pulled at my heart strings. The tale is somewhat goofy. A child complains about moms and how strict they are, making them eat healthy foods and take out the trash, and then he gets in trouble with his own mom for having dyed his younger sibling purple. That night, martians go to his home and steal his mom. He chases after them and manages to steal away on their vessel to mars. There we find out that the martians stole the mother because "They needed driving to soccer! And to ballet!...Plus cooking and cleaning and dressing and packing lunches and bandaging boo-boos!". The boy, while going over to tell the martians that their notion of motherhood is "completely sensible", trips and breaks his helmet. The boy starts to suffocate. The mother takes of her helmet, and places it on his head. She then begins to suffocate. Luckily the boy gets help and they find another helmet. In the end they all get home safely. I have to admit, Breathed has a great story here, and mixed goofiness with sentimental value very well.

In the beginning, it is clear that the boy is not very fond of doing chores, nor of eating vegetables, nor of getting in trouble, even though he does not explicitly say any of these things. Instead of telling the readers "my mom made me do yard work", he instead says that mothers "were giant, summer-stealing, child-working, perfumy garden goblins". Instead of saying that he had to eat his vegetables, he says that "Mothers were also bellowing broccoli bullies and carrot-cuddling cuckoos." Though this use of implied meaning may appear to be just for fun, it is actually a great literary exercise for new readers. Being able to infer meanings is a common skill tested on many standardized tests, and it can be hard sometimes. Practicing with obvious cases such as these will prepare new readers to infer more subtle messages later on in their literary experience. Thus Breathed's book becomes not only entertaining, but educational as well.

I would like to bring Breathed's illustrations to particular attention. They are detailed, beautiful, and well made, but what makes them especially fun are the little extras that Breathed puts in them. On the fourth page, all of the paintings on the wall look at the boy, forced to eat his veggies, with scorn and disgust. While he takes out the trash, the dog tries to get a taste of some of the juice spilling off of the boy's face from a can on the top of the pile. Perhaps the most entertaining is the martian's choice of bait for catching mothers: a cup of Starbucks coffee. These little additions make the book more entertaining, and encourage spending more time looking at and talking about the pictures. Certainly it improves the experience for children who cannot read, because they can still contribute novel information to the story and other readers.

One more thing that I wish to mention is Breathed's illustrative portrayal of the boy's mother. For a grand portion of the book the reader does not even get to see her face. Instead they are presented with shadowy, oppressive figures donned in sun hats thrusting hoes upon their children, or hands donned with dripping wet yellow rubber gloves pointing at a plate of unfinished broccoli and carrots. The first truly human look we get at her is on the ninth page, where the boy yells "I SURE DON'T SEE WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT MOTHERS!". We see only her outline against the stark white light behind a closing door. Her head is down, her shoulders slumped. Her sorrow and pain coming from the boys stabbing comment are sharply felt by the viewers. She is blurry, and shown only in black and white, in stark contrast to the sharp, colorful, loud illustration of the boy on the opposite page. Breathed certainly created an emotionally moving scene, especially for parents. However, the reader still does not get to see the mother's face. That does not happen until she must save her child's life. We first get to see, once again, her silhouette, framed against the martian sun as she walks nobly up to her dying son and takes off her helmet, dress blowing dramatically in the wind. This dramatic scene gives an air of suspense, and prepares the reader for the moment when the mother's face is seen. On the next page, we don't see a beauty queen, nor a tyrant, but a bedraggled face with a hair curler dangling across her forehead. Her eyes are tired, but filled with love. One may even note the hint of tears in her eyes. She is not angry at her son, merely concerned for his well being. This image captures one aspect of being a parent, the aspect that one would do anything for one's child, even give one's life without a second thought. Through the rest of the book, we see her either lying dramatically in the martian sand, or lying at peace in bed cuddled with her child. These illustrations really bring to life Breathed's message--Mothers are special, and not because they make life miserable through chores or vegetables, nor because they can be familial bus driver or doctors. Those are only side-effects. Mothers are special because they love their children. They love them enough to make them do chores. They love them enough to take them to the next ball game. They love them enough to die for them.

Reading this book helped me to realize again how much my mother is worth to me, how much she has done for me, and how much I am indebted to her. I suggest reading it, perhaps as a Mother's Day gift, or just for fun. It is a good book with a good message. I'm happy for having been able to read it.

[Billie Daughtry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Milo is so busy being angry about what his mom makes him do that he doesn't appreciate her until he almost loses her when Martians kidnap her and take her to Mars. The day before, he was sent to bed early because he tinted his little sister purple and made a big mess. Due to his smartmouth comment about his mother being a tyrant he also got no supper. While on Mars his mother risked her own life to save him when he broke his space helmet and passed out. She gave him her helmet. In a mad dash back to earth the Martians take this special mother in hopes that she will survive. The story ends with Milo cuddled next to his mother in bed and the Martians looking on longingly through the bedroom window. I would use this book to focus on the use of alliteration ("...bellowing broccoli bullies and carrot-cuddling cuckoos.") It could also be used as a talking point for Mother's Day and what our moms mean to us.

[Doc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anyone see the Disney movie this book was based on? It was one of the few that slipped under my radar though I heard of it so when I saw the book at a library sale I picked it up in curiosity and was surprised to see the creator of Bloom County (Berkeley Breathed as seen above) was responsible for this book too.

It is a simple read obviously meant for younger readers but the fantastic artwork showing us what we need to see at the right time and the words within paint this short tale with emotion as young Milo learns a valuable lesson in the importance of his mother. Not gonna say anything major here to avoid spoilers but believe it or not there are some near death scenes in this book but I think young readers should be able to handle them. As always use your own judgment to judge for your own children.

Also got to say those Kabuki paintings in Milo's home are something else. What a sense of design his mother must have. :)

[Abby Gallier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll admit, when I picked up this book, I was skeptical; it seemed like a weird book, and a strange concept...boy was I wrong! It makes so much sense! Of course Mars needs moms! The poor martians have no one to take them to soccer practice, or dress them, or make their lunches, or kiss their boo-boos! Not to mention this book has some pretty amazing illustrations; it portrays a mom in the beginning of the book as a child would see her when they are angry or annoyed. The main character calls his mom things like "bellowing broccoli bully" and "thundering humorless tyrant" when he is mad at her, but later on when we see that he does in fact love her, we see her as a caring and selfless mother. I never thought a book like this would play on my emotions so much, but it did, which is what makes it such a great story!

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, the pictures are phenomenal. Much as I enjoyed the drawing of "Bloom County" AND "Opus," they were comic strips.

Here I am standing at the art intersection of that PLUS Norman Rockwell PLUS... if I knew more about art, I'd add many names, names of artistic greats. I find Berke Breathed's full-color art to be compellingly attractive and original.

THEN THERE'S THE WRITING

Witness the young hero, Milo, giving his description of mothers, early on:

Anyone could see that they were giant, summer-stealing, child-working, perfumy garden goblins.

There was hardly much special about that.

Eventually, after much adventure...

WHEN YOU FIRST GET A GOOD (ILLUSTRATED) LOOK AT THIS MOTHER

And you read what she has to say...

Well, maybe, like me, you'll be weeping with joy and recognition, all the way through to the happy ending of this magnificent book.

[Cassie Veselovsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Berkeley Breathed, who brought us Opus and Bloom County, has created a yet another wonderful book for young readers. The mother and child disagree, like most mothers & children will do; the boy is sent to bed without supper and his mom feels horrible about it. Milo falls fast asleep and is awakened by Martians stealing mothers! Soon, Milo learns that mother's really are special and the book illustrates the lengths of unconditional love. ***Warning, there is a part in the story where the child thinks his mother may die and this can be distressing for young readers/listeners!!! She is fine, but still - worry can lead to panic!

[Chelsey Rypkema · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, it gave a really good lesson to not only young kids, but to some adults as well. I think that this book would be good for your elementary students, they can relate to the main character Milo in how they too sometimes don't always agree with what their mothers want them to do. But hopefully by reading this they will be able to see how much their mothers do for them and how much they should be appreciated. And for adults we always take things for granted that others might not have, until it is too late.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute action packed adventure that Milo and his mom take when martians try to take her in the middle of the night. He follows and they end up saving each other. I also watched the movie with the same title. It had some different characters that helped Milo and his mom get back to earth and was enjoyable too. The way the martian's were designed is for you to decide if they were cool or creepy looking. Maybe check out both movie and book and see for yourself.

[Jessica Burstrem · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is funny and heartwarming, and I am so glad that I managed not to cry while reading it today to my younger son's 5th grade class in honor of National Reading Month, unlike the first time I read it to him last week.

[While it seems a little sexist in its depiction of moms as the ones who do all the caretaking of children and the homes they live in together with fathers (in this depicted family at least), the reality is that this is still typically the case in the U.S.]

[Marissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was already a Berke Breathed fan, but somehow hadn't read this one yet. I read it this morning before I sat down to read it aloud to my kids tonight. It started off okay, but then I got choked up once we got to Mars, and couldn't finish talking. I had them look at the pictures and tell me what was happening, and then closed it and went to blow my nose and wipe my face. sigh.

[Patricia N. McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A disgruntled boy who’s fed up with his giant-summer-stealing-child-working-perfumy-garden-goblin-bellowing-broccoli-bully-carrot-cuddling-cuckoo-slave-driving-trash-mashing-rubbish-odor-ogre-thundering-humorless-tyrant of a mother realizes that she’s not so bad after all, though it takes a trip to Mars and back to help him change his mind. Fantastical illustrations dazzle the eyeballs.

[LaQueena Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Science Fiction book was about a little boy that did not understand what was so special about moms until his mom was abducted by aliens to go to Mars. This book would be great for 2nd to 3rd graders.

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book idea for Mother's Day reading in an Elementary classroom. Introduces some great vocabulary and also offers a great moral. Jump on your Banana Jr. 9000 and order one from your favorite book seller.

[Ana Siqueira · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the funny language and how the boy describes his mom as basically a mom who tortures him to eat carrots and broccoli. But the ending will show a different side of her and him. Super funny and sweet. I strongly recommend it.

[Cymiki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Milo thinks his mom is just a "bellowing broccoli bully" and feels his life would be oh so much better without her.....until she is kidnapped for mom work on Mars! Milo then realizes why he needs a mom.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love this book. The pictures are hilarious and you can just sit and look at them for minutes after you finish reading the words on the page. It's also so sweet and heartwarming and we just want to give big hugs to each other after. 😊