Reviewed on 1 August 2022

School Library Journal - The Black Hole Debacle
“The illustrator enhances the action and adventure in the story; when objects are sucked into the black hole they become “noodled.” Long stretched-out objects and extra long wiener dogs will make kids laugh and keep them turning the pages. Standout sections include the illustrations of space, especially the cover.”

Reviewed on 15 May 2022

Kirkus Reviews: The Black Hole Debacle
“In an episode that leaves no pun unturned, the unwelcome if exciting visitor, showing “less-than-stellar” manners, quickly gobbles down Jordie’s crayons, lunchbox, and other stuff—and worse, once she contrives to sneak it home, everything in her room (except a pair of unicorn underwear), including her dog, Neptune…Readers may wonder how she’s ever going to get out of her predicament, but, being observant as well as clever (a good combination for a budding scientist), she has a snappy solution that she pulls out of her pocket as soon as she’s gathered up her noodled pooch and other possessions…Readers will be sucked in despite the certainty of spaghettification.”

Jordie is awed by asteroids, perplexed by planets, and mesmerized by moons. She can't believe her luck when she finds a black hole taking up residence in her desk at school. Of course she's keeping it. But when the black hole starts snarfing everything in sight--including Neptune the dog--she realizes that black holes need wide open spaces, galaxies to graze, and stars to slurp. So she sets things right. Just not before she embarking on a wild, time- and space-bending mission to save her pup.

Author: Keri Claiborne Boyle
Keri Claiborne Boyle’s writing career started with bad poetry at age 10. Fortunately, she improved enough to land her dream job—children’s author—where her stories often feature plucky, offbeat characters that make her #LOL.

Keri’s a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, the Writers’ Loft, and holds a master’s degree from Northwestern University. She lives outside of Boston with her husband, three kids, one dog, two Guinea pigs, and a fish. A former nationally-ranked triathlete, when Keri’s not writing, you’ll find her running … or cycling … or swimming.

Illustrator: Deborah Melmon
Deborah Melmon spent her childhood in Southern California, within bike-riding distance of the beach. Encouraged by her high school art teacher, she began her professional career painting Christmas windows during the holiday season. After graduating from Academy of Art University in San Francisco, she restarted her career illustrating for the children’s market and licensing her work on greeting cards, gift wrap, and fabric. She has illustrated more than fifty children’s books. Deborah lives in the Bay Area and shares her studio with a comical Airedaleterrier named Mack