Oliver's Great Big Universe by Jorge Cham; 2023. Hardcover. (Ch-FIC)

Cosmos meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid in Oliver's Great Big Universe, an original illustrated middle-grade fiction series that blends science with narrative from the Emmy Award-nominated creator of PBS's Elinor Wonders Why. I know what you're thinking. What makes an average 11-year-old kid qualified to tell you anything about the universe? Am I famous scientist? No. Am I a super-genius at everything? Not really. Oliver has a lot going on starting his first year of middle school--new friends, new classes, new everything. But at least there's one thing that still makes sense: science! Determined to be an astrophysicist one day, Oliver explains everything he learns--like how the sun burps, how ghost particles fly through you, the uncanny similarities between Mercury and cafeteria meatballs, and most important, how the Big Bang is basically just like a fart in the school hallway. (Also, there are time-bending black holes, exploding supernova stars, and aliens! Well, there could be aliens.) Oliver finally feels like he's starting to figure things out . . . but can he stay out of the principal's office or catch a break from his annoying sister? With laugh-out-loud humor and cartoon-style illustrations from the bestselling writer and creator of PHD Comics, Jorge Cham, Oliver's Great Big Universe is a STEAM-themed, diary-style series following an 11-year-old who's taking on the whole universe--if he can survive middle school first.