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Outer Space

All Systems Red

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All Systems Red by Martha Wells
Format: Book, eBook, digital audiobook
Who it’s for: Adults

Working for a money-hungry interplanetary research company is hard. It’s even harder if you’re a self-aware SecUnit (security unit) AI tasked with keeping humans safe. Humans determined to complete useful research can be extremely annoying by not worrying about their safety on hazardous planets. Murderbot, as the SecUnit secretly refers to itself, just wants its assigned humans to be safe so it can spend its off-hours watching television in peace. When the humans decide to challenge their less than honorable employees, Murderbot wants to just ignore their well-intentioned bravery and go back to its shows. But somehow these aggravating humans have gotten under Murderbot’s armor and it just can’t seem to let them down.

All Systems Red is a great example of a novella done well. Somehow in only a few short chapters, author Martha Wells makes you care about this grumpy AI who would really prefer that you didn’t waste your time doing so. With dark humor and sarcastic wit, you will be looking up book two of the Murderbot Diaries (Artificial Condition) as soon as you finish reading All Systems Red.

Find All Systems Red in the Catalog 

Find All Systems Red on Hoopla

Killjoys

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Recommended TV Series
Series Title: Killjoys
by SyFy & Universal Studios
Format: TV Series on DVD
Who it’s for: [Teens, Adults,]

“From the producers of Orphan Black and the creator of Lost Girl comes Killjoys. This sci-fi adventure follows a fun-loving, hard living trio of interplanetary bounty hunters (a.k.a. Killjoys) sworn to remain impartial as they chase deadly warrants around the Quad, a system of planets on the brink of revolution. A motley crew that always has each other’s back, until a dark secret threatens to tear apart their trio for good. Follow their adventures and discover their secrets with all 10 episodes back-to-back and uninterrupted.”  – via SyFy and Universal Studios

I picked this up because a former coworker recommended it.  I was looking for a new Sci-fi series that was like Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, or Eureka.  The DVD cover was quite attractive and intrigued me. Plus it was produced by the SyFy channel. The show has many similar traits to Firefly, Star Wars, and other science fiction entertainment.  I really like space operas with action, adventure, mystery, a lil romance, and fun.  This show has all of those elements yet somehow they put their own unique spin on it.  It will feel familiar to regular fans of Sci-fi but not exactly, the same plot twists, friendships, villains, rebellions, romance, robots, etc. A good thing (or bad depending) is that the show was not produced in the USA. This means it is short; there are only 10 episodes per season.  You don’t have to carve out 2 months of your life to binge all four seasons. Since every episode ends with at least one cliffhanger, I would suggest you checkout all 4 seasons on DVD at one time.

(Killjoys television series is inspired by the comic series written by Gerard Way, The true lives of Killjoys. The collected issues 1-6 are available in print format in Calvert County and digital format on hoopla .)

I would recommend this to people who like a bit of magical mystery with their typical episodic adventure space show.

Click to Request Season 1-4 on DVD!

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

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Read the Book, Watch the Movie!
Book: Valerian and Laureline by Mézières, J.-C. (Jean-Claude)
Movie: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Movie Release Date:  21 July 2017
Starring: Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevingne, Clive Owen, & Rihanna

“An adventure film from Luc Besson, the director of The Professional, The Fifth Element and Lucy, based on the French comic book series by J.C. Mézières.  It is the 28th century, Alpha is the space-traveling city inhabited by millions of species from thousands of planets. Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are special operatives that are part of the force that maintain order in this universe.  It is nonstop action as the two complete one mission after another.  One mission is special and assigned to them by the Minster of Defense himself. Enjoy the ride as they race to solve the mysterious force that is threatening the city of Alpha.”  -IMDb

I picked this up because of the cover. I like space operas and I really liked the other films Luc Besson had directed. The visuals were just as stunning as The Fifth Element but the story was not as engaging. I did enjoy it but if I could have stopped comparing it to The Fifth Element, I would have enjoyed it even more. It was a fun action movie with simple missions that go sideways so chaos ensues. The 2 main characters had that great chemistry of being in love but still annoyed with each other. There was a lil bit of mystery which, I figured out cuz I am a mystery queen. The secondary characters played by Rihanna and Clive Owens were cool. The alien races were original looking but not so out there I got distracted by their otherworldlyness. I would recommend this to people who like fun, nonstop action, adventures in space with bright imagery and a lil morality lesson with their entertainment.

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A Wrinkle In Time

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Book: A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Movie: A Wrinkle In Time
Movie Release Date: February 26, 2018
Starring: Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Peña, Storm Reid, Zach Galifianakis, Chris Pine

Meg Murry hasn’t seen her father in years. He mysteriously disappeared while working on a top secret scientific experiment. Ever since, Meg has lived with her mother, her brother Charles Wallace, and the twins Sandy and Dennys. One dark and stormy night, Meg’s life changes completely. Her neighbor, Mrs. Whatsit, explains the existence of tesseracts or manipulations in space that allow travel to different worlds and dimensions. This discovery sets Meg, Charles Wallace, and her neighbor Calvin on an interplanetary adventure. During the quest to find her missing father, Meg encounters amazing creatures, new friends, and terrible foes. Join her as she endeavors to overcome the forces of darkness and bring her family back together. Find it in the catalog 

Chewie and the Porgs

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Submitted by Ms. Tess!

“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” begins Chewie and the Porgs by Kevin Shinick, with pictures by Fiona Hsieh, a story about some of our old and new favorite Star Wars characters! On a remote island, on a remote planet, Ahch-To, lives Luke Skywalker, last of the Jedi Knights, but this isn’t a story about him! This is a story about porgs, native creatures who live a peaceful existence until a spaceship, the Millenium Falcon, arrives, carrying a girl, Rey, a droid, R2-D2, and a Wookiee, Chewie. The porgs are most interested in Chewie, and follow him around the island as he looks for food. Chewie tries fishing, but the porgs eat all the grubs he found for bait! Then when he gets back to the ship, he finds the porgs having a party! Chewie remembers he has some snacks on the ship, but the porgs eat those too! Chewie is furious until he realizes: they landed right on the porgs’ nest, crushing their supply of food for the winter! No wonder they won’t leave him alone. Good thing Chewie has a plan to make things right, and fill everyone’s bellies. Chewie, R2, and Rey arrived on Ahch-To with questions. They leave with some answers, and some delightful new friends, the porgs! See this book listed in our catalog

Night Night, Groot

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Submitted by Ms. Tess!

It’s bedtime for baby Groot in Night Night, Groot by Brendan Deneen with pictures by Cale Atkinson. This story is sure to be a hit for your little fan of Marvel superheroes because they are all in this book! And they are all helping little Groot guard the galaxy one more time before heading off the dreamland! Because right before Groot is about to hit the sack for the night, Rocket Raccoon rushes in, grabbing him for one more mission. Or is Groot just dreaming of hanging out, flying spaceships, and beating up bad guys with his friends Captain Marvel, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, and more? Who cares! With soothing rhyming text, and joyful illustrations, superhero fans, young and old, will want to read this book every night! See this book listed in our catalog