Commander Toad and the Dis-asteroid

Commander Toad #4

by Jane Yolen

"A funny space adventure that spoofs  Star Wars  while providing an easy-to-read story." — Booklist

When Commander Toad and the crew of the Star Warts learn that a disaster has struck and asteroid, they race across the galaxy to the rescue. But it's hard to figure out just what is wrong, especially when there is a language barrier between the Star Warts crew and the pigeon inhabitants of the dis-asteroid. A hero is needed, but is even intrepid Commander Toad brave enough to save the day?

Fans of  DK LEGO Star Wars,  Tom Angleberger's  Origami Yoda,  and silliness will toad-ally love Commander Toad!

Genres: Childrens, Science Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Kids, Fantasy

64 pages, Paperback

First published April 5, 1985

About the author

Jane Yolen is a novelist, poet, fantasist, journalist, songwriter, storyteller, folklorist, and children’s book author who has written more than three hundred books. Her accolades include the Caldecott Medal, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Award, three Mythopoeic Awards, the Kerlan Award, two Christopher Awards, and six honorary doctorate degrees from colleges and universities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Born and raised in New York City, the mother of three and the grandmother of six, Yolen lives in Massachusetts and St. Andrews, Scotland.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Weird, rather unexciting story that absolutely failed to keep my niece and nephew's attention. This was our final Commander Toad book, and despite the length of the books in this series, the kids have never had trouble staying tuned in to the stories to the end. This one just did not do it for them, though! Overall we liked this series, but I do think the stories were not totally consistent for us, earning everything from five to two stars. Of course, that has been true for us of Jane Yolen's work in general--the Commander Toad series just seems to be representative. We love Commander Toad, Mr. Hop, Lt. Lilly, Old Doc Peeper (in his grass green wig) and Young Jake Skyjumper, but some of their stories, including this one, were not as endearing as the characters.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second of the Commander Toad books we took on our trip was Commander Toad and the Dis-Asteroid which centers around the dangers of miscommunication. The Star Warts receives a distress call involving "swell beans". They think the senders of the message need more beans when what they really need is something completely different.

Reading this book was fun because at the time we were growing some pea pods which aren't all that different from green beans. It was neat to see something from our day-to-day life included in a very silly story.

Sean also liked the puns that are rampant in this book and in the Planet of the Grapes. He's just getting to be old enough to "get" puns although they still takes some explaining.

[Dolly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I picked this book up. I think it was just an optimism about the collaboration between the author and illustrator. We've enjoyed books by both these individuals and were expecting greatness. I'm afraid we were disappointed. This is no Frog and Toad in space.

In fact it is a very, very strange story. Part homage to Star Wars and other space-related shows from the 70s and 80s, part little-boy hero fantasy, part LSD trip?!? The story is very bizarre and dream-like. We finished it, but we will not be looking for more of this series at our library.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cute parody of Star Wars and Star Trek in an early reader? Of course I love it! Not only that, there's a whole Star Trek type mystery with an alien language to solve. Yes, please! It might be a little over the intended readers' heads though.

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Commander Toad books have been some of my kids' favorites since they were about six years old. We read these over and over (and over) for several years! Love them! They tickle our funny bone(s).

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy the little puns and things in the backgrounds of the pictures of the Commander Toad books. I feel like they get more prominent with each book.

[WinterBat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the puns are cute, some are puns that only my elementary school students will enjoy

[Greta Uhde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toadly Rad!!!! Very interesting story with a nice plot twist. Was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Brave and Bright. Bright and Brave.

[Alysia · Rating 4 out of 5]

We read this as a bedtime story.... It would be great for an emerging reader (K-1 or early 2.)... The balance between words and pictures was just about right for both my three year old and my 7 year old.

The story is kind of cute, with characters that made my boys smile. The "Hero" isn't as much of a hero as he thinks he is, but the team makes it all work out.

Spoiler.... beans aren't capable of "popping"... I suppose they can, but they don't deflate like the book describes them as doing. When my beans pop./.... they just smoosh everywhere.

We checked two other books from the series out at the library. We'll read those, too.

[Mark Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Commander Toad and the crew of the Star Warts are about to leave Star Fleet headquarters when they are given their new mission. An asteroid is sending out an SOS, and it appears they need beans. Armed with a wide variety, the crew sets out. What will they find when they arrive?

As always, this is a fun book filled with puns, both in the text and the illustrations. The plot, while clever and suspenseful, doesn’t put our characters in as much danger, making it perfect for the more timid reader. Kids and parents alike will enjoy this book.

Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was boring to me only because I don't like this type of adventure books. Some students would really like it, especially because the characters are animals. To me, the illustrations were plain and simple. The one thing I really liked was that some of the sentences like: the cow jumping over the moon created the Milky Way because they were thought out. This is a lengthy transitional book for students who aren't quite ready for a chapter book just yet.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Commander Toad is a hero in command of the spaceship Star Warts. His crew includes a copilot named Mr. Hop, an engineer name Lieutenant Lily and a computer chief named Jake Skyjumper. They received an SOS message from Star Fleet that an asteroid between Mars and Jupiter has had a disaster. According to the message, they need more beans. But when they arrive, they discover that's not the problem at all.

Cute!

[Heathert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Commander Toad and his crew have to help the inhabitance of a flooding asteroid. But there is a catch, the locals are pigeons. The resulting language barrier leads to some baffling miscommunications.

[Amy Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

The books in this series range in the AR 3 point range with this one being 3.1. Would be good for a good second grader reader that isn't ready yet for first chapter books.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun book! Beware of the puns.

450L

[Lafcadio · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stuff with the stuff.