Ebby, Dan and I quickly prepared The Silver Pig for another dangerous adventure into space.
‘Don’t forget to pack the chocolate fudge, chips and space rolls,’ I said. ‘Last time we were starving.’
Captain Cal and his crew are back in action, with two more exciting adventures. In the first, Cal receives a call from the BAIT (Bureau Against Interplanetary Trickery) commander. Professor Spitzer – once a gifted inventor, but now an evil mastermind – is threatening to take over the world. Only the crew of the Silver Pig are intrepid enough to take him on, and save the world.
In the second adventure, Cal and his friends take part in the Great Space Race, Cal’s chance to prove he is the best pilot in the galaxy, but first he has to overcome the cheating and trickery of the other pilots.
Captain Cal and the Robot Army and Captain Cal and the Great Space Race are the third and fourth books in the Captain Cal series, aimed at emergent readers making the transition form picture books to novels. There is plenty of action told through simple text in the first person voice of Captain Cal. Illustrations on every page not only complement the text but also show the three child characters acting out their adventures in back yard play – the Silver Pig a tin shed, and other characters including the family dog.
These easy reads are likely to appeal to both boy and girl readers in the six to eight year old age group.
Captain Cal and the Robot Army and Captain Cal and the Great Space Race, both by Jan Dallimore, illustrated by Richard Morden
Black Dog, 2007