By Mike Maihack
A teenage Cleopatra gets yanked thousands of years into the future, where a prophecy says she's the one who will save the galaxy, if she can pass her classes and stop blowing things up first.
In ancient Egypt, young Cleopatra would rather sneak off and cause trouble than learn to be a proper princess. Then she touches a mysterious tablet and gets flung far into the future, to a world of talking cats, laser blasters, and a space academy where an ancient prophecy names her the girl destined to defeat the evil tyrant Xaius Octavian. Under the eye of a wise cat mentor named Khensu, she has to learn to be a hero, mostly by being fearless, impulsive, and an alarmingly good shot.
This is bright, fast, and easy to fall into, with a heroine who's all nerve and no hesitation, which is exactly what a child who loved a plucky space adventure wants more of. The panels are big and clear, the humor is warm, and the action is the fun kind, blasters and chases rather than anything grim. It's a full series too, so a child who takes to Cleo has several more books waiting.