Rocket Town

“This week, our family had the opportunity to check out Rocket Town by author and illustrator Bob Logan. A popular story artist who has worked on feature animations like Madagascar, Open Season and Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Logan has an original animation style that definitely captures the attention of all ages.

We’ve only had Rocket Town a week or so and I’ve already had to read the book at least 5-10 times a day and sometimes more. My little guy who is not quite 2 really likes the bright colors and fun illustrations. He likes the truck that the guy drives in and has to look for the puppy on every page. The countdown at the end is the most exciting part, and it’s funny to watch my guy try to get get his numbers in the right order to count down with me. Rocket Town is going to be a favorite at our house for quite awhile, and I’d definitely recommend it for other toddlers who want to blast off for some fun.“ - Two Kids and a Coupon

“What if rockets dominated an entire town and every other mode of transportation were converted into a spaceship version of its former self? That is the premise of this richly illustrated offering. With helmet in hand and accompanied by his dog, a man drives his pickup truck from a rural setting to a place where fast-food joints, school buses, unicycles, and fire trucks have all turned into rocket ships, alongside an array of other ships whose origins are less apparent, like Chopper, Guzzler, and the green Stinky Onion. In this graphical feast for the eyes, filled with dark concentrated colors and abundant geometric shapes, Logan does not so much tell a story as state that each invention is either big, small, fast, slow, or moving up or down. At Rocket Ray’s Pre-Owned Rockets, the protagonist makes his own purchase, leading to the inevitable “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...BLAST OFF!” Reminiscent of Donald Crews’s vehicle books (HarperCollins), this board book will appeal to young transportation buffs.” –Gloria Koster, West School, New Canaan, CT

“I love to read to my children but I don’t always have time. Recently, I’ve caught my oldest two “reading” a book called Rocket Town to each other. It was the cutest thing! They are only 4 and 2 and don’t really know how to read yet but it appears as though they do with this book. Rocket Town by Bob Logan is one of their favorites and they know all of the words by heart. The illustrations are “out of this world” with all sorts of different rockets including a police rocket, an ice cream rocket, and my kids favorite, the stinky onion rocket. Some are slow, some are fast, some are big and some are small but all of the rockets in Rocket Town are fun and interesting to my kids. The book ends with a traditional count down to blast off.” - Mommies With Cents

“Quick!!!
Grab a kid and grab a seat!!!
You are in for the ride of your life!

We were sent a review copy of Rocket Town by Bob Logan and let me just tell you...
BROXTON LOVES IT!!!!!
(Okay, I admit... I love it to!)

Rocket Town is the story of an astronaut and his dog, who head over to Rocket Town.
Rocket Town is full of, you guess it! ROCKETS!!!!
Even the signs are in the shapes of Rockets!!!
Broxton’s favorite part is when they leave Rocket Town and head back to his favorite rocket...
You want to know why?

BECAUSE there is a countdown and then a BLAST OFF!!!!!!
I would say that this is a great book for houses with boys..
but, quite honestly...
This is a great book!
Boys and Girls!
and Rocket Lovers of all ages!!!
The illustration is amazing!
The colors!
The rockets make me secretly wish we had one to at least play in! :)

I can not wait to get more of his books, this is only the second book by Bob Logan...
So, I can only imagine what he will bring us next!!!!” - Jumpin Beans


“This is an adorable board book. It is pretty big first off (about the size of a DVD case) which makes it easy for me to hold to read to my boys and for them to hold to look at themselves. Since it is a board book it is thick cardboard and therefore pretty durable. My boys and I love the illustrations as they are bright, funky and very kid-friendly. It contains a simple story about Rockets and each page has only a few words on it like “These rockets go up.” and the next page will say “These rockets come down.” The illustrations of course go along with the story and there are even numbers in the book for the blast off sequence which is great because my 4 year old is learning his numbers now. Whether you have a child who likes rockets or not, this is a really cute book and one I recommend!” - Mom and More

“Boys and their toys! And all boys love to see real or fantasy toys in books and these books can become favorites, especially if these books are straight to the point, are fun and easy to read!

Rocket Town is such a book.

It’s filled with delightful rockets of all sizes and shapes and easy to read story lines and yes you can shout ’BLAST OFF!!" at the end! :)

My son (and daughter) loves this book and the boy now wants to make these rockets. Soon he might just want one for his birthday!

He loves when I read it to him because I try to make silly noises as rockets do and then we all shout ’BLAST OFF!’ at the end!

He also loves reading by himself and to his sister. He is only five years old. I just love when he does this sweet thing. He gobbles books!” - Jamerican Spice


“I don’t often do book reviews because let’s face it, my time is spent: chasing after two boys, two cats, one husband, and finding a brief moment to take a shower...I don’t often make time to read a novel these days :(
But I could not pass down the opportunity to review a children’s book! My boys LOVE to read, it’s a daily ritual in our house to read several books throughout the day.
I received the book "Rocket Town" by Bob Logan for review, and it did not disappoint!
Each page is colorful, and really kept my boys attention!
It was easy to read, and we’ve read it so much, my 4 year old has it memorized!!

Rocket Town is a children’s book that is about an astronaut and his dog driving his pickup/rocket through Rocket Town! If you’re child loves to use their imagination (what child doesn’t?) than this book will sure entertain everyone who opens it up!” - Life with the Stevens


“Send young readers on a trip into space with Dreamworks story artist Bob Logan’s new board book, "Rocket Town."

Filled with captivating, colorful images, this book tells the tale of a blonde-haired astronaut and his playful pup as they travel through Rocket Town in an old pickup.

During their drive, they are presented with a range of ships, which push the young reader’s imagination; there’s everything from shark rockets to school bus rockets. (Can your child come up with some additions for Rocket Town?) And, the book offers a series of opposites, helping children to compare and contrast, and recognize different sizes, shapes and actions.

It’s an out-of-this-world adventure – and I’d expect nothing less from Logan, who has worked on animations for "Madagascar," "Open Season" and "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs."

While the book is geared toward readers between the ages of 1 and 5, I found this selection to be entertaining for adults, too – so much so that I’m tempted to keep "Rocket Town" for myself.” - OC Family, Inland Empire Family

“Are you on the lookout for new board books to read with your little ones? I am always adding to our collection and was happy to get a copy of Rocket Town! It is a rocket-themed board book done in a beautiful retro-feeling style for your space fans – the illustrations reminded me of a lot of the books I read as a kid. Rocket Town tells the story of an astronaut and his dog as they drive truck through a fun town that’s filled with colorful and creative rockets – taxi rockets, police rockets, and more. The last few pages are a fun countdown to a blastoff that was a huge hit in our house.

Author and illustrator Bob Logan has worked as a story artist on feature animations such as Madagascar and Open Season, as well as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and is currently working on the upcoming Puss in Boots! He is definitely a talented man!“ - BabyRazzi

“This board book is said to be for babies and preschoolers. My two year old and four year old fit the bill, and they enjoyed the book. However, I found this to be a great book for my first grader to read. He was able to read this book from the start to finish. This made him feel good to read to his brothers. My four year old continues to count backwards from ten, just like in the book. My two year old, however, took note of the puppy that was involved in the adventure. We quickly discovered that we needed to look on every page to see if we could find him. It was interesting to see all of the things that were rockets. I think mine was the "just married" rocket! This is a really cute book!” - My OKC Mommy

“I love reading to both of my boys just as much as they love being read too. Recently we had the opportunity to go on a new adventure with a book titled, Rocket Town! This book took us on a very fun adventure and my four year old LOVES it! It is an easy to read board book that offers vibrant colors on every page. This is a great book for a beginner reader. As my four year old has been expressing interest in learning to read we turn to this book often!” - As They Grow Up

“I love to read to my boys, and my boys love to be read to.
We often cuddle up on the couch (yes, we take up the whole couch!) and read together. It is a very fun bonding moment we have with our boys, and something that I feel is very important for every parent to do with their children. Our older boys like to read to their younger brothers as well. (This is so very sweet to me.)

We recently received a board book, Rocket Town by Bob Logan.
This book tells the story of an astronaut and his dog as they drive an old pickup through Rocket Town-an amazing town filled with rockets!
What boy doesn’t love rockets? (My boys do!)

This is a very easy read book. As a matter of fact, my 5 year old son, who is in Pre-K and does not yet know how to read, has actually learned to read this book himself! I was so very proud of him, and now he is reading the book to his younger brothers, almost daily!

The pages of this book are so alive and colorful! They are exciting and would make any little boys eyes light up and heart fill with excitement!” - Raising My 5 Sons

“So goes the tag line for Bob Logan’s newest book, Rocket Town. And it appears to be true in our house! From the day it arrived we have read it no less than twice a day and I think on the first day it was closer to a dozen times.

Logan is a story artist for Dreamworks and his amazing work is showcased in this little book that tells a big story. A man and his dog take a drive in their old pickup truck into Rocket Town. They find all kinds of rockets for every purpose and on the final pages trade in their truck for a truck shaped rocket and “Blast Off” into space.

This book is a masterpiece for boys in my opinion, and probably girls too! It’s not too long and not too short and each page has just a few words to go with the colorful retro illustrations. Most of the rockets have names (my son’s favorite is the “Stinky Onion”) and there are so many fun little details that adults will pick up on too.

Even my one year old, who will hardly sit still for a book, likes this one! And in the last few days I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard my older son counting, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Blast Off!” as he races around the house.

I’m so glad we had the opportunity to review this one and it’s going on my short list of gifts for little boys!” - An Island Life

“Rockets. Bright illustrations. A man and his dog. What do these all have in common? They are all part of the brand new board book from author and illustrator Bob Logan called Rocket Town! I have to preface this review by saying that when my husband happened upon this book, laying on my couch, abandoned by a fussy two year old, even he was intrigued enough to pick it up and actually read it! Now that says a lot!

Rocket Town is full of high quality artwork, retro looking figures and lines reminiscent of The Fairly OddParents, but with bolder and brighter colors. So, it was no surprise when I found out that Bob Logan works for DreamWorks as a story artist on films including Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. But now instead of bringing someone else’s design to life, he gets to fill the pages with his own original artwork and story...

His second book (the first was Sea of Bath), Rocket Town left me wanting more from Bob Logan. I can’t wait to see what delightful world he brings to life next! And neither can the kids. Even though this is a board book, created for ages 1-5, the whole family has enjoyed this book, and like I said... I even caught my husband reading it. :) The different rockets are so cute, and some are just plain silly. The books long rectangular shape is a nice change from the traditional square books, and the bold colors pull you right in. There’s also an opportunity for some counting fun when the characters gear up for launch.“ - My Four Monkeys

“I enjoyed this book as did Callan, but my 18-month old Mason did not seem too interested. I think the illustrations were too "busy" for him. The book says for ages 1 to 5 and I think it would be more appropriate for say 3 to 6. But other than that, great book. Like I said, Callan enjoyed it and we looked at it for quite a long time.” - Hanging Off The Wire


“We enjoyed reading this board book – it is very colorful and certainly features a lot of rockets. All the different rockets in town It sparks kids’ imagination.

My girls immediately asked if they could visit the rocket town themselves. They loved the school bus rocket the most. They started thinking of other things that could be rockets.

I liked that I could tell the story based on the pictures and invite kids to imagine what happens on the next street of the rocket town.

This book is also a good colorful reason to talk to the kids about the 50 year anniversary of man in space – you may remember that 50 years ago, on April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin was the first man to enter space and orbit the Earth.” - My Busy Children

“Just when I think there is nothing new under the sun in preschool literature, I find the best book in the world for 1 to 5 year olds who love things that go “vroom”.

Bob Logan’s Rocket Town tells the story of an astronaut and his canine companion on a journey in an old pickup, making their way through a town filled with all kinds of rockets.

The rockets are numerous and fanciful: you got your taxi rocket, your shark rocket, your school bus rocket; if it is a rocket, Rocket Town has one.

Author and illustrator Bob Logan was a story artist on feature animations such as Madagascar, Open Season, , and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs; we will next see his work in the forthcoming Puss in Boots!” - Mom Most Traveled

“I have to always have in some books as reading is so important to me. And the Grandbabes both love stories. My Grandson will love the cardboard book ’Rocket Town’. It is perfect with rockets, trucks and trains while they are traveling in an old pickup. Bright colors that help the countdown to blastoff. This was done by Bob Logan who worked on Madagascar, Open Season and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs too!” - Crazed Mind

“I have girls, no boys, but they sure can hang with the boys! In fact one of mine has a favorite "rocket" at the playground she loves to play in. So, how perfect to read her a book about rockets. This book is really simple as far as words - your basic rocket book with a countdown at the ends. The pictures are so fun to look at - my girls love to look at all of the rockets and townspeople - and the dog of course. And the favorite thing to do is pick a rocket and do the countdown...” - Retail Therapy

“Originally self-published by the author in 2007, Logan’s story, set in a futuristic-meets-retro world, follows a man and his dog as they drive a yellow pickup truck through Rocket Town, where they encounter rockets of all kinds, which are used to demonstrate antonyms. Commuters travel in a "big rocket," and a baby rides in a small toy rocket; families watch "rockets go up" in a park, while another group comes back down with help from parachutes. Minimal text keeps the focus on Logan’s 㤺s-era vision of the future, where waitresses on hover-skates deliver burgers and shakes, and school buses, ice cream trucks, and even sharks get rocket makeovers. Readers ought to have a blast. Ages 1–up. (Apr.)” - Publishers Weekly

“We received the cutest new book for William called Rocket Town by Bob Logan. I took the book out of the package and handed it to him and he immediately said "rocket ship!" Look at that big grin! Lately William has shown a big interest in rockets so I knew this book would be right up his alley.

Rocket Town is a very cute board book that shows the adventures of an astronaut and his dog as they travel through where else~ Rocket Town! They encounter all kinds of rockets: a shark rocket, hot air balloon rocket and even a school bus rocket~ this totally fits in with a little one’s imagination. There is a countdown at the end that is a big hit with William and he wants you to go back to it over and over again. It’s a simple book great illustration.

William really loves pointing out all of his favorite rockets. I think this book is ideal for a little boy and makes a great gift for any occasion. I still prefer board books at this age since boys tend to be a little destructive!
You can purchase a copy of Rocket Town here.

A little about the Author and illustrator: Bob Logan has worked as a story artist on feature animations such as Madagascar and Open Season, as well as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and is currently working on the upcoming Puss in Boots! Logan’s picture book, The Sea of Bath, charmed readers with fun and sweet illustrations, and Rocket Town will delight parents and children alike with colorful and imaginative rockets.” - Mom Files

“Bob Logan, in his new rocket-themed book, welcomes readers to Rocket Town, an unusual community where most residents ride in rockets — big rockets, small rockets, school bus rockets, ice-cream truck rockets, scooter rockets, and so on. It’s a place where, "everyone has a favorite rocket." The area kids carry rocket-shaped balloons and go on rocket carnival rides. One man, dressed in an astronaut suit, seems a little out-of-place in Rocket Town. He drives an old, yellow pick-up truck through town, accompanied by his loyal Beagle dog. They wizz by all sorts of different rockets, finally arriving at "Rocket Ray’s Rockets," a rocket sales lot. After a brief search, astronaut man finds a special rocket suited perfectly to his taste and blasts off into space.

Logan’s board book belongs in a book galaxy all its own. With enthralling art and simple text it’s very appealing to toddlers (especially rocket-crazed toddlers like my own), but due to the complexity of the illustrations and flashy rocket theme, older kids will find themselves drawn into the details. My daughter pointed out that all the baby strollers in the book are rockets, and she loves the "just married" rocket carriage that blows heart shaped exhaust. My son thinks the green "stinky onion" rocket is hilarious. The unique, digitally rendered illustrations are done in retro-pop style. The illustrations also look slightly futuristic with a rockets and space art theme (think Hanna Barbera’s Jetsons crossed with the latest in animation technology). Logan primarily works as a story artist for DreamWorks and his animation talent is apparent in the pages of this book.

Now typically I’m not a huge fan of board books because most are versions of picture books formatted in a downsized design to fit babies and toddlers. However, Rocket Town was never released in picture book form and is specifically designed with the toddler/preschool audience in mind. Rocket Town is a counting book (it has an awesome countdown to blast off), and the book also teaches opposites by comparing various rocket sizes, speeds and travel directions. Measuring 9 in. wide x 6 in. high, it’s a medium-sized board book designed with larger page spreads to properly showcase Logan’s fantastic artwork. Part of me wishes that the book had a more elaborate storyline presented in a picture book format — the Rocket Town idea is so fascinating! But sometimes simpler is better, and toddlers/preschoolers certainly deserve original, high quality stories of their own. At $7.99, this book is bargain! Blast off to your nearest book store and pick this one up to liven up your young child’s board book collection!” Brimful Curiosities



“We absolutely loved this quick read. Being a board book, I didn’t mind Savannah turning the pages and trying to grab at the book. The illustrations were amazing and eye appealing. This would be a great book to read to your little man, who loves rocket ships and space. The story flowed and ended with a countdown into space. I have been teaching Savannah counting with her fingers and loved seeing her count, as I read the book and the final countdown.

This book reminded me of the animated Pixar film, Cars. The bright and bold colors used on each page and the fine detail of each rocket ship captured our attention while reading the story. I will definitely be picking up Bob Logan’s other books. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Bob Logan has recently worked as a story artist for blockbuster feature animations like Madagascar, Open Season and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. So, I can see why I loved the illustrations in this book so much!” - Inspired by Savannah

“This book is very nicely done. I like that It’s a board book, so it’s very sturdy. The artwork its wonderful, kind of a retro feel. I love how the last rocket is the old truck. This is a great book for boys!” - Song Berries

“Bob Logan is a genius illustrator who has previously contributed his talent as a story artist on such features as Madagascar, Open Season and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. He has also lent his brilliance to a first book, the picture book, The Sea of Bath.

In Rocket Town, Logan uses gorgeous, full page illustrations to tell a simple tale of a man who decides to take a rocket trip with his dog. The words are simple and give basic opposites in small sentences. There is not much story to this board book, but children could spend HOURS pouring over the pictures. They are highly detailed, creative and illicit great imagination in your kids. My son is 3 and LOVED it. My daughter is 5 and liked the pictures, but was not that interested in it otherwise.

This would make an excellent addition to your child’s Easter basket! (Or reward them for good behavior!)” - Mom on the Random

“Rocket Town is a sophisticated board book for all ages. The drawings are “hip”, modern and highly stylized.. and no wonder, the author Bob Logan is a Dreamworks story artist who has worked on Madagascar and Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs.

The story tells of an astronaut and his canine companion driving through their pickup through Rocket Town. There’s so much to see too. Very colorful rockets come alive…big ones, small ones, and one even shaped like a shark.

The only thing I have to say is that I wish the yellow pickup truck was more noticeable in the pages. There’s so much detail that I feel it sort of gets lost. However, I do love the imagination of it all and recommend it as a fun book to get as a gift.

Published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, this board book retails for $7.99.” - MogulBaby

“How Neat! I loved this book and so did my children. This is one of the most unique boardbooks I have seen. The illustrations are excellent. There is so much to look at on each page. The text, though simple, is just the right length for young children. All four of my children loved the book about rockets going up and down, and the final count down to blast off.” - Abbie Reviews

“As I’m writing this, my son and husband are in the living room reading Rocket Town. I know this because I can hear my son’s voice, "Ten, nine, eight, seven ...!" We love looking at the wild and inventive rocket designs and talking about which one is his favorite and what does he think this one does and wouldn’t it be so fun to drive that one ... This is such a quirky, fun, creative book. We’ve read it many times over the past few days, and it is his "happy time-out" book of choice (i.e., You are being grouchy and crazy and need to sit on your bed and hug your bear and read this book until you’re ready to rejoin civilized society). The illustrations are so engaging, it has worked like a charm. My three-year-old gives it two thumbs up, and so do I!” - Everead

“The book Rocket Town by Bob Logan is a unique Retro looking board book for young children all about rockets. It is about an astronaut and his dog going on an adventure through a town looking for their perfect rocket. On their adventure, they see MANY different rockets. Each page is filled with many different, VERY unique looking retro rocketships!

Rocket Town certainly gets a young child’s imagination going. There are so many things to look at on each page and the illustrations are very interesting and unique.

I really like how the text is written with some words written in different font or colour (e.g. fast/slow, up/down) for emphasis. This helps early literacy skills develop! (Can you tell I was a Kindergarten teacher?!?)

My 2 1/2 year old son loved looking at this book with me. He loved pointing out the little dog on each page (and sometimes he’s not so easy to find!).” - Multi-Testing Mommy

“What I loved about this board book was not only the simple but fun storyline, but moreover the illustrations that were simply strewn with hidden gems. When I read this book to my youngest, we had fun looking at all of the images, watching to see some of the fun treasures that the author/illustrator has hidden in the story itself. I also liked the humor that he put in as well, including the rocket ship named and shaped like a stinky onion, as well as a rocket shaped like a shark!

All-in-all, though this was geared toward young children, this book was both fun and engaging! I know that I will be reading this with my youngest daughter over and over!” - Dad of Divas


“I LOVE THIS BOOK!!! Rocket Town by Bob Logan, who’s day job is working as a story artist on feature animations for Dreamworks like Madagascar, Open Season and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Logan joins the good company of another animator/illustrator TonyFucile, author and illustrator of the picture book, Let’s Do Nothing and illustrator (co-creator, really) of the beginning reader book by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee, Bink and Gollie. I have often found that illustrators who also write have a tendency to produce really great books, perhaps because they can think visually and texturally (think Chris Van Allsburg, David Wiesner, David Selznick, Emily Gravett). An artist who comes from the world of animation has even more to bring to the world of picture books when it comes to visual story telling. Logan definitely exhibits this quality in his second book, Rocket Town, which is a BOARD BOOK! Yes, a board book! While I have seen plenty of gorgeous artwork in the board book format when traditional picture books are reissued as such, I have never seen such amazing illustrations created especially for this form. In Rocket Town it all fits together perfectly. Then there is the perfectly pertinent subject matter of the book to consider. As a parent of two, I can attest to the inherent love of rocket ships that boys, on the whole, seem to have. My youngest son learned to count backwards from ten to one before he learned to count from one to ten. And, as a bookseller, I can tell you that there are almost NO BOOKS ABOUT ROCKET SHIPS on the shelves, making Rocket Town all the more special.” - Books4YourKids

““Rocket Town” (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $8) by Bob Logan is a blast for children ages 1 – 5. Follow a cute beagle and his owner as they drive by all kind of rockets – small, big, fast, slow, and more 0 on their way to their own. Simple text and retro-pop illustrations make the journey one kids (and parents) will want to take again and again.” - Pasadena Star News

Format: Board Book

Dimensions
Length: 6 in
Width: 9 in
Weight: 13.00 oz
Page Count: 24 pages