Where is it partly cloudy and 860°F? Venus! This classic picture book is a fascinating exploration of space written by children's nonfiction veteran and former chairman of the American Museum of Natural History–Hayden Planetarium Franklyn M. Branley and illustrated by Kevin O'Malley. Full of interesting facts about the eight planets in our solar system, including our very own Earth, this bestselling book also features photographs from Voyager and other space explorers.
Now rebranded with a new cover look, this book features a find out more section with instructions for making your own solar system mobile and web research prompts about how to track the moon. Both text and artwork were vetted for accuracy by Jurrie van der Woude of NASA.
This is a Level 2 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, which means the book explores more challenging concepts perfect for children in the primary grades and supports the Common Core Learning Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. Let's-Read-and-Find-Out is the winner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Outstanding Science Series.
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Children's Literature - Dr. Judy Rowen
Part of the "Let's Read and Find Out" series of science books for the early grades, this book takes a quick look at the nine planets in our solar system. Photographs from Voyager and other space explorers are interspersed with colorful illustrations. The author conveys the scale of our solar system with understandable analogies, for instance, if Jupiter were a hollow ball, over 1,000 Earths could fit in it! Hands-on activities (planet mobile, interplanetary distance model) are described at the back, and web sites with further information are also provided. 1998 (orig
School Library Journal
K-Gr 2Originally published in 1981, this title gets a facelift with the addition of some new information, including a brief list of Web sites, plus new illustrations. Though given to dogmatic statements like "The most important part of the solar system is the sun," Branley makes his points briefly and precisely, steering clear of distracting dialogue and side commentary. Also, rather than the more common one-planet-after-the-other tour, he groups together heavenly bodies, discussing temperature, size, and orbital length in comparative terms; the effect is to reinforce the idea of the solar system as a system rather than an assemblage of isolated elements. He finishes with instructions for a planetary mobile and several other simple projects. O'Malley creates a rudimentary story line in his illustrations, in which an African-American version of Ms. Frizzle guides a class around a planetarium, and inserts small astronomical photos into his cartoon scenes. Still one of the most basic books on the subject, this is a welcome replacement for the old edition.John Peters, New York Public Library
