Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century is a 1996 children's science fiction picture book written by Marilyn Sadler and illustrated by Roger Bollen. It tells the story of Zenon Kar, a girl in the year 2049 who lives on a space station in the Milky Way.[1] She is sent to her aunt on Earth to keep her out of trouble. She spends the summer on her grandparents' farm, learning their "old-fashioned" chores in their low-tech life. References in the novel are inspired by well-known science fiction characters.[2]
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| Author | Marilyn Sadler |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Roger Bollen |
| Genre | Science fiction, Young adult fiction |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers |
Publication date | 1996 |
| Pages | 48 |
| ISBN | 978-0-689-80514-1 |
In 1999, the book was adapted into a television film as the Disney Channel Original Movie Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century.[3]
First edition
edit- Marilyn Sadler (1996). Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century. Illustrated by Roger Bollen. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-689-80514-1.
Series
editThe Zenon, Girl of the 21st Century series includes five books:[4]
- Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century (1996)
Zenon's mischievous ways land her on Earth; while spending an entire summer at her grandparents' farm, she becomes a wiser and more mature person...gaining an appreciation for manual labor, and even helping to raise a litter of puppies.
- Bobo Crazy (2001)
Zenon is the only kid on Space Station 9 left without a Tobo: a robotic pet which can talk, fly, and even do homework. Instead, Zenon's dad buys her a cheap knockoff called a Bobo, which can't do homework or even talk! However, Bobo's loyalty compensates for his lack of intelligence...especially when an otherworldly phenomenon has all the Tobos going berserk and attacking their owners.
- Zenon Kar - Spaceball Star (2001)
After sitting on the bench all season, Zenon finally gets her chance to play spaceball when Grebba - the star of Space Station 9's team - is unable to participate in the championship game against Earth's team.
- The Trouble with Fun (2001)
Zenon agrees to entertain Teena, the well-behaved and polite daughter of an eminent Earth scientist. At least, she seems polite and well-behaved. Actually, Teena's idea of fun means breaking just about every rule she trips over...mostly because it's there. How will Zenon survive a girl who's basically herself to the tenth power?
- Stuck on Earth (2002)
Zenon and her friend Nebula sneak away from a class field trip to Earth, so that the girls can enter Zenon's latest invention - Galaxy Glue - in the 34th Annual World Science Fair at Cleveland, Ohio. En route, the girls are beset by numerous complications.
References
edit- ^ "Zenon : girl of the 21st century - North Texas Library Consortium". North Texas Library Consortium. Retrieved 2022-05-07.
Because Zenon creates trouble at her space station home somewhere in the Milky Way, her parents send her to her grandparents' farm on Earth to work for the summer.
- ^ "Children's Book Review: Zenon: Girl of the Twenty-First Century by Marilyn Sadler". 1996-05-01. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
- ^ Erickson, Hal (2014). "Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century (1999)". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2014-12-20. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
- ^ "Zenon, Girl of the 21st Century series by Marilyn Sadler". Goodreads. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
