The First Cat in Space and the Wrath of the Paperclip

Ages 8 to 12, Grades 3 to 7

New York Times bestselling author Mac Barnett and Caldecott Honor–winning illustrator Shawn Harris return for the third installment of a hilarious full-color POB middle grade graphic novel series following the adventures of First Cat, LOZ 4000, and the Moon Queen as they work to stop an AI villain paperclip from taking over the world. Perfect for fans of Dav Pilkey and Jeff Kinney.

4.5 billion years ago...on the ancient planet of Theia, an AI paperclip designed to fix grammatical errors attempted a coup. CheckMate was tired of correcting "who" vs "whom"—and concocted a plan to eliminate spelling errors once and for all. It would turn all carbon-based life forms into something beautiful, practical, perfect.A paperclip.And Checkmate would've destroyed the world too, if not for a fateful crash landing into Earth that buried it deep in debris. It was long forgotten by civilization. Until now. When a explorer unearths CheckMate, the AI soon escapes and invades every computer on Earth. The General and Dr. Milksop are out of options. There's only one group who can help them now: the First Cat in Space, the Moon Queen, and LOZ 4000. But when CheckMate zoops First Cat's spacesuit and reverts him into a regular cat, all hope seems utterly lost.Will our heroes be able to stop Checkmate in time? Will everyone be turned into paperclips? What exactly does that First Cat spacesuit do anyway?

About the Author

Mac Barnett is a New York Times bestselling author whose books have been translated into more than thirty languages. His picture books include two Caldecott Honor–winning collaborations with Jon Klassen: Sam & Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn. Among his other popular books are I Love You Like a Pig, illustrated by Greg Pizzoli, and The Magic Word, illustrated by Elise Parsley. He lives in Oakland, California. You can visit him online at macbarnett.com.Shawn Harris’s first illustrated book, Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers, received seven starred reviews, was an Orbis Pictus Award Honor Book, an ALA Notable, and a PW Best Book of the Year. His other picture books include Eggers's What Can a Citizen Do, which was a Time Magazine Best Children’s Book, Everyone’s Awake by Colin Meloy, A Polar Bear in the Snow by Mac Barnett, and his own author-illustrated works Have You Ever Seen a Flower? and Doing Business. Harris also occasionally moonlights as singer-songwriter of the popular Oakland, California, band the Matches, whose early 2000s album art sparked his illustration career.