Cosmic

Published in 2008, Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce is a science fiction novel for middle grade readers. The story centers around 12-year-old Liam Digby, who is taller than his peers and always feels too big. When he and his friend Florida get the chance to take a rocket ship into space, Liam feels small for the first time. The story explores several themes, including How a Change in Environment Can Change One’s Perspective, The Importance of Fatherhood, and Growing Up and Becoming Responsible. Cosmic was on the shortlist for the Carnegie Medal as well as the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize for its blend of humor, adolescent issues, and philosophy.

This guide uses the 2015 Macmillan Children’s Books edition of the novel.

Plot Summary

Protagonist Liam Digby, who’s 12 years old, is much taller than average. People often think he’s an adult, and he sometimes takes advantage of this to get into mischief with his friend Florida. One day, Liam is at the fair with his class and goes on a ride called the Cosmic, which shoots him and his dad up into the air and back down again. The ride leaves Liam feeling so fantastic that, after the class leaves, he sneaks back into the fair and goes on the ride several more times. When his father finds him, he isn’t happy, but is relieved.

Similarly, when Liam goes to his first day at Waterloo High, the headmistress thinks he’s a staff member and even introduces him at the school assembly. To help Liam fit in, his parents sign him up for drama club, though his mother groans about how quickly he’s growing up. Florida attends drama club, too, and the two friends discover that strangers think they’re father and daughter. They even attempt to drive a car at a dealership, though they don’t make it out the door.

On the night of the drama class play, Liam gets a call on his phone—like many technological devices in this fictional world, manufactured by the Drax Corporation—from a woman asking about his love of thrill rides and adventure. She tells him to call back the following day for the chance to win a trip to experience the best thrill ride ever made. Meanwhile, Liam and his father struggle to relate, as Liam would rather play World of Warcraft than hang out with his family. The next day, after several hours on hold, Liam’s call gets through to DraxWorld, but his teacher takes his phone. He receives a callback later and is told that he has been selected. However, the woman (Dr. Dinah Drax) thinks Liam is a father, so he asks Florida to pose as his daughter. She agrees when she hears that they’ll ride in a limousine and possibly become famous.

Liam tells his parents he’s going on a school trip and makes a fake letter to convince them. Florida arrives at his house, and when the limo comes, she feels like a celebrity. They receive new phones and several Drax gadgets, and are told they’re headed to a secret location. Dr. Dinah Drax explains that the contest is to celebrate fathers. She greets Liam and Florida at a small red airplane, and they fly the long trip to the Gobi Desert in China, where they have their own car and lodging. After a night of fun, Liam and Florida awake the next day and discover that they’ll be going on an actual rocket ship (the Infinite Possibility) into space.

Dr. Drax hopes to search for new worlds and give the next generations a chance at a good life. She then announces that only the children will go into space, deeply disappointing Liam. While Florida explores the rocket, Liam fills out forms for her and meets the fathers of the other three children: Monsieur Martinet and his son, Max, are deeply concerned about winning; Samson One and his son, Samson Two, are deeply logical; and Mr. Xanadu and his son, Hasan, are deeply invested in finances. Liam insists that one father should go on the mission, so Dr. Drax decides to let the fathers compete and have the children vote on which father can go.

Their first task is to retrieve a flag in the desert near the rocket (which is located in Infinity Park). Using Florida as a leader (because she’s the only one wearing sunglasses), the group ventures into the desert. When they reach a massive dune, Liam shows his leadership skills, inspiring the others to climb it by making it a game. After retrieving the flag, the group heads back to Infinity Park, under the moon and stars. Because Mr. Xanadu brought ice cream, he got the votes instead of Liam. The next task is to get used to wearing an inflatable spacesuit. Mr. Xanadu offers Liam some alcohol beforehand, and Liam plays around and causes everyone to fall over in their suits. He wakes up later, feeling hungover, but learns that he got one vote. Florida tells Liam that he’s a bad father, but he reminds her that he isn’t a father at all.

The following day, the group practices experiencing zero gravity, or a parabola, by flying up and down in a plane repeatedly. Liam is the least scared of the group, and he inspires others to enjoy the ride as well. Florida becomes interested in astronaut history and gossip. The next day, Liam proves his worth when everyone must ride a machine called the Vortex, which spins them so fast that they feel intense gravity force (or g-force). Liam rides it four times, once with each child, proving not only that he can handle the g-force, but also that he’s caring and compassionate.

The final task is a flight simulator, and Liam is the only one who successfully steers the rocket back into the atmosphere. However, the kids don’t vote for him because they worry that he’ll monopolize the console in space. The following day, Florida leaves for the crew quarters, and Liam starts to deeply worry about her safety. Since Mr. Xanadu won the contest, Liam worries that the children won’t have an adequate leader and protector in space. Dr. Drax insists that nothing will go wrong, dismissing his worries.

Looking up at the massive rocket, Liam feels worse, and talking to an employee named Mr. Bean doesn’t help, because Mr. Bean mentions all the people who have died during space travel. Liam tries to withdraw his consent for the mission, even telling Dr. Drax that he isn’t an adult, but she again dismisses him. Liam then tries to get Florida to secretly leave with him and tells her to call her father. Florida admits that she doesn’t have one, and Liam realizes that he’s the closest thing she has to a father.

Leading up to the launch, everyone must eat space food, and Dr. Drax excitedly announces the other part of her plan: to launch a space sail ship called the Dandelion, which will perpetually orbit the moon and Earth and provide people the chance to see space. Mr. Xanadu is exposed as a scam artist, so Liam is chosen to go on the mission instead. Mr. Bean advises him to pack things that remind him of home, lest he become disconnected from Earth while in space. Hours later, Liam and the other four children enter the rocket, and Liam straps everyone in.

The rocket launches into space and through the atmosphere toward the moon. Liam receives word from control, instructing him to push a button to release the protection panels, which goes smoothly. However, the kids start arguing over who gets to push the buttons to eject the Dandelion, and they end up pushing the buttons in the wrong order. Earth disappears from view, and everyone panics, but Liam calms them. Soon, the others fall asleep while he goes down to the Dandelion to see the view.

Through massive windows, he looks out into the depths of space. Florida soon joins him, and she points out that they’re staring at the moon. Realizing that they could be lost in space forever, Florida suggests orbiting around the moon and then ejecting the Dandelion to propel themselves back toward Earth, just like Apollo 13. Liam agrees with the plan, but Max still wants to push the button, so Liam distracts him with another game. During hide-and-seek, Liam leaves the rocket ship to look for Hasan and almost starts drifting alone through space.

The rocket reaches the dark side of the moon, and everyone’s in terror and awe until Earth becomes visible again. Liam keeps thinking about his father and wishing he were there. Samson Two makes some calculations and suggests a second orbit around the moon, at which point the children decide that they prefer space because it’s more fun and has no expectations. While Liam stays on the ship, the other four take the command module to the moon and play on its surface for a while.

During that time, Liam orbits around the moon, feeling small, alone, and insignificant. At that moment, he gets a call from his father, who knows that Liam isn’t on a school trip. When the others return, they tell Liam that they left him a surprise on the moon. After several more trips around the moon, Liam steers the rocket successfully back into the atmosphere, and it crashes to the ground in Siberia. Wolves greet the group, but soon their phones are located, and Dr. Drax arrives with food and blankets. She makes everyone sign forms promising to keep the mission a secret.

Months later, another mission is launched, this time publicly, and Dr. Drax’s daughter is aboard the rocket. Dr. Drax claims that it’s the first trip of its kind, but when her daughter reaches the moon, she discovers an unmistakable message left by the children: the words “Hello, Dad” engraved on the moon forever.