If life were only as simple as following a yellow brick road. Gail’s quiet life among the Kansa Station turbines ends with a hug, a prayer, and a shove… into space.She thinks she knows who she is, but she’s wrong. Who is she really? She’s about to find out.Of course, landing on the wrong planet is complicated enough without crashing into things. Add to that spybots, waspbots, and cyberwolves and … that spybots, waspbots, and cyberwolves and it’s no wonder Gail just wants to go home. Back to a life without this interplanetary circus and its flying monkeys.
Intrigue, secrets, and more than a little danger turn a “simple mission” into a hair-raising adventure as Gail—and three friends she meets along the way—accept a mission to save O-Zoras.
In the end, Gail wants nothing more to go home. She’s just not sure where that is anymore. “I’ve decided that home is more about who than where.” Well, that’s a good thing, Gail, because you’re not on Kansa anymore. It’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz meets Firefly in this fresh, a little zarbi, but totally licit YA space adventure.
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It was fun looking for the elements in No Space Like Home that matched the Wizard of Oz book and movie. Most of the characters and plot action were similar but there were a few surprise twists to characters, plot, and setting.
Not all of the new versions of familiar characters are likable. A pleasant addition to the plot is some religion as Gail takes an old family Bible with her on her flight through the galaxy.
I enjoyed the familiarity and the newness. It felt like I was exploring new world’s and cultures along with Gail (Dorothy obviously). I think you will laugh when you find a familiar element from our current culture.
There is an elitist class system in this futuristic society that expanded out from Earth long ago. The author, Dell Tunnicliff, uses this to address concepts of discrimination and racism giving the book more depth.
Gail’s painting hobby is a fun addition as we see the reference to actual artists in our history and famous paintings. A further chance to learn something new exists with the use of a couple uncommon scientific words! I did not know, either, that turbines kill birds. I found her brief mention of nutritional principles fascinating too.
There were a couple moments toward the beginning where a situation seemed forced and answers too pat. Despite this, I enjoyed reading No Space Like Home. Dell Tunnicliff does an excellent job of subtly reminding us of the character’s connection with the original book’s characters. I was happy to see a second book is coming out soon. A variety of droids, technology, and the winged monkeys (her kids insisted she keep them) with a little romance make this a delightful read!
I received a free advanced reader copy of this book. All opinions are completely my own.
Posted originally with excerpts on BookofRuthAnn.com
A super-fun twist on an old classic, No Space Like Home combines all the quirkiness of The Wizard of Oz with space adventure in this out of this world dystopian YA novel. Great characters, subtle but meaningful spiritual encouragement, and fun worldbuilding give this book everything you need for a great read.
My Thoughts on No Space Like Home:
Learning curve. This is not my normal genre and I typically avoid it because it’s just not something that appeals to me. But this book is good! I read it because my kids like this type of book and I don’t just trust authors to create clean fiction for my kids to read.
This is a young adult space adventure novel. It is appropriate for teens in my opinion and my 14 and 13-year-olds are going to be reading it. They’re chomping at the bit so to speak for me to hand it over to them.
A futuristic play on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz but bringing in God and standing up for what’s right. This is a great book and will keep you entertained. It was fun to note the similarities and differences to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
This is going to be a series and we’re already planning on adding subsequent books to our to be read pile.
I should mention this is also a play on something called Firefly, but since I have no idea what that is I really can’t say how that’s incorporated. I’m assuming it is the sci-fi element.
I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from Celebrate Lit. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.
Just like any other retelling of popular books or movies, the reader comes to the book with a certain set of expectations, and they may be different from the author’s. For this reason, I find reading them can be a little risky, but this futuristic version of the Wizard of Oz piqued my interest and helped me overcome my trepidation. Overall, I found it a fun journey to both the familiar and the alien.
I enjoyed the characters and how they were written in this novel; while I’m sure the temptation to keep them very close to the originals must be strong, I liked how the author made them her own and fleshed them out in different ways, giving their motivations nuance and depth. One of my favorites, interestingly enough, was Boc, a secondary character who just captured my heart with his kindness towards Gail and her new friends.
The world building is gradual, which is nice and kept me from being overwhelmed with new information, but I have to say, it left me a bit confused. This setting is a bit of a mish-mash of Oz, contemporary teen lingo, and futuristic slang. While my guess is that appeals to younger readers, I felt a bit out of the loop and lost about where we really were. Other elements helped to counter it feeling a bit too close to our own modern day, however, like the descriptions of different locations in Hiraeth and the complex societal structure and educational system.
One of the things I liked best was the addition of a spiritual component, with multiple references to God as our Good Shepherd, the Word as our guide, helping us to understand what is otherwise indecipherable, and other readily recognizable elements of Christianity.
I think those who enjoyed the original Wizard of Oz will likely enjoy this futuristic version of it, provided they are not purists who cannot stand changes to beloved characters or scenes. I personally enjoyed the different take on the story and how I could recognize the first while still appreciating how the author altered it to fit another setting.
I received a review copy of this book through Celebrate Lit but was under no obligation to post a positive review. The opinions expressed are both honest and my own.
My all time movie is the The Wizard of Oz. As a little girl I was glued to the television each year it came out. Even today I will watch it if I know it will be televised. I was so excited to read this book and see what the author could do with a classic movie. The author has an imagination that clearly takes readers on a journey to other worlds with excitement. Gail is a fantastic character and I enjoyed following her on her journey.
The story is set in space which I thought was a brilliant idea. There is so much out there we don’t know about and with the author’s guidance we are able to explore other worlds and learn valuable lessons along the way. There are some references to the classic movie but the author puts her own spin on it to heighten readers intriguing minds.
The technology and strange words used in the story at first irritated me. But I realized that we are in space and the language will be foreign to us. Running a spacecraft does take considerable knowledge and I began to become engaged in the story as I felt more comfortable with the writing.
I loved that Gail carried her Bible with her but I would have liked to see a bit more spiritual aspect to the story. I would like to see more interaction with characters and not so much techie lingo in the story. It would be nice to spend a little more time describing the place they travel to and give readers insight to the people there. I will be looking forward to the next book in the series and am excited to see where the author takes the story next. Overall good job of a twist on The Wizard of Oz.
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.
What I think you should know:
No Space like Home is a Young Adult Fiction, Science Fiction novel. It is the first in the Stars of Hiraeth series by author Dell Tunnicliff. It is a loose retelling of The Wizard of OZ and each chapter opens with a quote from one of L. Frank Baum’s Oz series. Instead of Dorothy we have Gail, who is sent on an unexpected journey in which she will need the reimagination of The Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lion.
What I think about this book:
As a Mom of a young, but advanced YA reader I look at YA books with slight skepticism, however I was delighted with this one and highly recommend it for a fun twist on OZ or just a new series for YA readers. The book did contain mild violence, however it was fitting in the story and was not something I would object to my seven year old listening to ( he has already listened to the original).
As a reader I loved the story, it was quirky enough to catch my attention quickly and captivating enough for me look forward to the next book in the series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Celebrate Lit, this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own.
As I was about to pass this one up, I found out that it’s a retelling of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, which is one of my mom’s favorites. The funny thing is, I have never been overly taken with it, and so I was quite amused to read in Tunnicliff’s note to readers that she isn’t, either! Moreover, I am definitely not a fan of futuristic or space tales. But that’s the beauty of reviewing books: stepping outside of your comfort zone and trying something different. Did I become a space fiction enthusiast? No, but I did really enjoy this book!
A clever reprise of L. Frank Baum’s beloved classic, Dell Tunnicliff’s “No Space Like Home” takes the primary elements from the original story and integrates them in such a way that the novel is not redundant and can be enjoyed by readers whether they are familiar with the storyline or not. The epigraph that opens each chapter consists of a quotation from Baum’s story that corresponds to the ensuing action and helps to anchor the science-fiction and space component in readers’ minds. I realized that while I have seen the 1939 movie numerous times, I have never read Baum’s original story, so there were some surprises for me, and I am very glad that Tunnicliff chose to incorporate these passages. They also helped me to further understand details of how events were unfolding, particulars that I would definitely have missed otherwise.
As for the characters, I personally did not feel a strong connection with any of them. I did not deduct any stars for this, though, because this may very well just be my personal quirk. I will say that I was disappointed that Gail decided to go to a nightclub with her friends, but I am also thankful that the author does not condone this behavior. One particular scene with Storm tore my heart out, but I will refrain from elaborating to avoid spoilers and simply say that this is a tender spot for me in any type of literature. I also would have enjoyed a more influential faith element; Uncle Henri does bolster Gail in the beginning by saying, “Remember God, our Shepherd, is always with you. The Good Book is key. It decodes what we can’t understand.” These truths carry throughout the narrative, but in a subdued manner.
The part of “No Space Like Home” that I found most intriguing but also struggled to process is the technological aspect. The target audience includes teens and young adults, and I feel that they would have a much better grasp on this than I. I might be in my thirties, but I have extremely limited knowledge when it comes to technology. I don’t have a smartphone or tablet, and I don’t get cell reception where I live. Therefore I felt clueless most of the time and would have been very grateful for a glossary of terms, but I doubt that many others would have this issue. The writing itself is well done; one of my favorite sentences is in the first chapter: “Painting provided temporary escape, but the envelope still leered from her cot-side table, cinching the knot in her stomach like a pneumatic torque wrench on a windmill’s yaw bearing.” This novel is laudable for being self-published and intricate, although it could use more editing to tidy up grammatical errors. Overall, however, it is a commendable debut novel for those interested in a unique twist on “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” as well as for science fiction and outer space enthusiasts.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through CelebrateLit and was not required to post a favorable review. All opinions are my own.
With a decidedly different twist on Wizard of Oz, No Space Like Home by Dell Tunnicliff becomes a futuristic space travel novel. Billed for young adults, the subject matter is one that would quickly appeal to that age group. While the vocabulary wasn’t difficult, I wondered how easy it would be for that age.
This book is a stricter retelling of the story than some other, looser retellings that I have read. While some characters have changed, there is a leading paragraph from The Wizard of Oz at the beginning of each chapter. The reader than can easily see how closely the space chronicle resembles the Frank L. Baum original as the book progresses. Actually, quite a neat way of sorting out similarities and differences.
While there were some references to God, I was not impressed that the overall tone was spiritual.
While not a personal favorite, definitely a book for those young or young at heart who like either science fiction or The Wizard of Oz.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author and publisher through Celebrate Lit. All opinions are my own for which I am solely responsible.
No space like home
No space like home is about Gail going into outer space. The book is first in a series. The book is basically for someone a lot younger than me and I think a younger person would enjoy it very much. I loved reading about all the good food. I also enjoyed her dog, pets always make it more enjoyable.
The book has quotes from the wizard of OZ. A great way to introduce someone new to a classic.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher through Celebrate Lit. This book review is my own opinion.