Sunnyside Audiobook By Rob Dircks cover art

Sunnyside

A Novel

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Sunnyside

By: Rob Dircks
Narrated by: Rob Dircks
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About this listen

“GET OFF MY LAWN.”

They just stood there. In the dark. On his grass. Three punks. They were always there, roaming the streets, kicking over trash cans, spray painting the train underpass, throwing eggs on Halloween, a stain on his otherwise bucolic Ridgewood, New Jersey neighborhood. Once they left a bag of dog crap on his front porch and set it on fire. He almost stepped in it. But for some reason this new thing, the just standing there, pissed him off even more. Like they owned his lawn. Pot-smoking punks.

So begins the journey of Theo Hoover, disgruntled history repairman, who accidentally becomes Grand Oversee -- humanity's supreme leader -- managing the terraforming of Sunnyside, mankind's potential new home planet. But people are dying. And aliens are coming. And his brother is missing. And Kate Kingston of all people has been assigned his Chief of Staff. Oh, and that chaos is only the beginning, as the fate of Sunnyside – and humanity – comes to rest in Theo's shaky hands.

With Sunnyside, Rob Dircks (#1 Audible Bestselling author of You're Going to Mars! and Where the Hell is Tesla?) has crafted a science fiction story with a dry, constant thread of humor -- but also a brotherhood story, a friendship story, a love story, a story about loss and letting go, and a story about our absurdities and whether we can overcome them -- or if we even should. The Black List describes it as "a distant future filled with irony, madcap characters, spaceships, a few bureaucratic conspiracies and an utterly unique voice with a pace and energy that moves at warp-speed.”

And the story is timely: it explores a world where bureaucracy is so tangled it gives rats' nests a bad name, and corruption is rampant. BUT… it offers much needed hope (and a well-deserved escape) in our “interesting” times. Enjoy the book!

©2025 Rob Dircks (P)2025 Rob Dircks
Adventure Humorous Science Fiction Solar System Witty Funny
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Rob Dircks you are by far my favorite author and narrator. Your books are consistently funny and heartwarming with the best characters. I’m always looking forward to your next release.

Really good book Rob Dircks

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If you're read Rob Dircks before, prepare for another installment of hilarious belly laughs mixed with heartstring-tugging moments, with real characters that you love navigating a crazy set of circumstances. Bravo, Rob.

If you haven't read Rob Dircks before, you're in for a treat. You love sci-fi, right? But most sci-fi leaves you feeling neutral, perhaps mildly fascinated. Dircks is not satisfied with that - you will laugh out loud, I guarantee. And then you will literally tear up, i swear! Dircks' ability to pull you into the middle of his thoughtful-but-madcap adventures is magic. Rare.

Rob Dircks does it again - loved it

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I’ve been waiting for a new Rob Dircks book for way too long… but this story was totally worth the wait. It has everything I've come to expect from a dircks story - humor (wry, subtle, over the top, even slapstick), and lots of heart, and a great main character in Theo. He’s the classic zero to hero, taking on the challenge of leading humanity with the stumbling earnestness i have come to expect from the author. And the side characters - especially Shaggy - are priceless. The narration of them all was spot on too, and the combination of everything, story, heart, narration was extremely satisfying. Five stars all the way!

Worth the wait!

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Listener received this title free

This book was so much fun. Aliens, terraforming, and a regular dude who somehow ends up in charge of everything at the worst possible time. It's weird and wacky and just a great ride all the way through. The writing is sharp, the world is nuts, and I laughed more then I expected. Definitely unlike anything I've read in a while.

Hilarious and Totally Original

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This is truly a book for the times. Theo’s mix of apathy, optimism, and trepidation over the future of humanity is something a lot of us can relate to right now.

The story is fast-paced and well thought out! It’s hilarious and heartwarming— with a few emotional gut punches that come out of literally nowhere. That’s what I love most about Rob Dircks’ writing— he’ll make you laugh one moment and bawl your eyes out the next. His characters are always relatable (and charmingly bizarre!)

It’s like a mix of You’re Going to Mars and the presidential storyline in Don’t Touch the Blue Stuff. I listened to it in one sitting, and enjoyed every single second of it!

Brilliant— One of Rob Dircks’ BEST!

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A happy, engrossing tale that left me smiling. Good guys, bad guys, aliens,it has it all.

Great Fun

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It's funny, well written and satisfies my sci-fi need for commenting on social and political issues in the real world

This is feelgood and I love it!

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I saw this Saturday and didn't even bother reading the description or listening to the preview - I hit the by button. I downloaded Listen to the Signal as individuals and as the collection on Audible. I've been a fan since The Wrong Unit was released, and whenever I see that Rob has a new audiobook I buy it without a second thought. Still, I'll try to be objective.
Like most of Rob's stuff this is a story about the people. I'm used to his unique sense of humor but was still caught unprepared and laughed out loud quite a few times. OK, enough gushing.

Objectively speaking the story flowed really well. No drawn-out character introductions or backstory. The tech isn't over-explained or handwaved away either. There's just enough of each to move the story, which a bit of a reluctant-hero, coming-of-age, boy-meets-girl, alien-first-contact, good-vs-evil, intermittant-swashbuckling sort of story. And dead-cat jokes.

I genuinely hope that there are sequels, or at least more stories in this universe. I'd like to hear how the aliens get along at their next stop and find out what their names will be then.
Oh, and Urban Curmudgeon really needs to be made into a real game.

The only thing that could have improved this is a puff screen for Rob's mic. That's it.

New Rob Dircks book? Say no more - take my credit!

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I'm always impressed by all these wacky ideas Rob comes up with! If you like Andy Weir, you'll like this :-)

Quick, delightful, quirky, and funny

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Listener received this title free

I was pleased to see Dircks had a new novel available and jumped on it as soon as I finished reviewing the last book I read. I'm a huge fan of his Where The Hell Is Tesla? series and I loved The Wrong Unit. Sunnyside definitely fits with those for quality.

The characters are a batch of unexpected weirdos in a future where humanity is in the process of terraforming a new home world and there have been a few speed bumps. After some unpredictable and a dash of bizarre, they find themselves on a mission to save the day.

Dircks' series are commonly upbeat and his sense of humor resonates with mine. His narration is top tier - clear, energetic, and you can hear how much he loves his characters in his voice.

This adventure is a quick read / listen and I was only able to put it down twice between the first page and finishing the story. I was pleased by the subtle analogies to issues we're facing in modern society. Dircks did a great job of not slapping the audience in the face with the message he was sending, but still made clear that we can do better as people.

I'll rate this one, "A pile of goofballs tasked with saving-the-day with my favorite narrator and a few cats."

Another fun adventure from Rob Dircks

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