B2SW: First Pages: The Search for WondLa by Tony DiTerlizzi

When a marauder destroys the underground sanctuary that Eva Nine was raised in by the robot Muthr, the twelve-year-year-old girl is forced to flee aboveground. Eva Nine is searching for anyone else like her, for she knows that other humans exist, because of an item she treasures—a scrap of cardboard on which is depicted a young girl, an adult, and a robot, with the strange word, "WondLa." Tony DiTerlizzi honors traditional children's literature in this totally original space age adventure: one that is as complex as an alien planet, but as simple as a child's wish for a place to belong.
Breathtaking two-color illustrations throughout reveal another dimension of Tony DiTerlizzi's vision, and, for those readers with a webcam, the book also features Augmented Reality in several places, revealing additional information about Eva Nine's world.

Why I chose this: Gads and gads of kids (and teens, and adults) went crazy over The Spiderwick Chronicles, and I'm sure the DiTerlizzi camp is hoping to catch that same lightning with WondLa.  They have a really cool interactive set-up to lure you in and keep you, a big push from Simon and Schuster, and of course, the fabtastic artwork of DiTerlizzi himself -- this is poised to be a big hit with the imaginative sci-fi/fantasy kids set.  And I have a feeling from this opener that it won't disappoint.

This week, why not share some of your childhood favorites with a child?  

You never know; years from now, they might be dedicating their book to you...


[Please note: this reading came from an ARC, and the final version may differ.]