Voyages: Space

Ripley's Twists

by Mike Goldsmith, Sally Ride

Join Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, who will be your guide as you explore the mysteries of the universe. Look at planets, stars, meteors, comets, black holes, and our very own planet Earth. Find out what it takes to train and be an astronaut and discover what it feels like to break through Earth's atmosphere. Learn what's inside the space shuttle and investigate the other planets and moons in our solar system. Finally, consider what surprises other galaxies might hold in this dynamic look at the world of space exploration.

Genres: Nonfiction

60 pages, Spiral-bound

First published November 15, 2005

About the author

Dr. Mike Goldsmith studied the philosophy of time and space at Keele University, where he also obtained his PhD in astrophysics. He was formerly the head of Acoustics at the UK's National Physical Laboratory and is now an author of nonfiction books for children.

Reviews

[Savanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Space was about the space program, astronauts, spaceships, and just space in general. It has great pictures that work with the text to get you really involved with the book. It showed all of the different parts of the space craft, and helped you get to know the first American astronauts. Also it teaches kids a little bit about the solar system.

I think that this is a great book for kids with ADHD or for young boys. It was exiting, fun, and ingenious the way the book was put together. It gets you directly involved with the book. I is in my opinion a little dry, but that is only because the subject matter didn’t interest me. I really do love the way it is set up though.

[BillyAnn Stempel]

This book is a look into space and what we know about it. There are a wide variety of topics covered in this book such as how astronauts train, what it feels like to fly in space, and of course a lot of information about what is out there that we know about.

The illustrations in this book are mainly photographs and what appear to be artist renditions of certain parts of space.

I enjoyed this book because it did cover such a wide variety of topics. This book would be a great beginner space book to help introduce many different aspects of space. Though the language is not that simple, the topics covered are all basic space education.

[Debra · Rating 5 out of 5]

629.45 Goldsmith. Stunning book by Kingfisher Publishers with a forward by Sally Ride. Inviting die-cut cover of an astronaut floating in a circle of what was the earth. Information is tabbed like a notebook with three sections:Reaching for the Moon, On Board the Shuttle and The Planets and Beyond. It opens with a brief history of astronomy. There are transparencies of the moon, an astronaut in a space suit and the Apollo 17. It has timelines, beautiful visuals and it's packed with information written by a PHD but accessible to children. I loved reading it and looking at it.

[Katya Epstein · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lots of pretty pictures, with a few of those see-through and fold-out pages that kids seem to love. The text is unimpressive: too advanced for young children, without going into enough explanation to be satisfying to older kids. I'd say the best part is the image illustrating all the different parts of an astronaut's spacesuit. My almost-3-year-old daughter was very impressed with the fact that they have heated gloves.