Carl Went To The Library

by M.J. Mouton, Jezreel S. Cuevas (Illustrator), Michael Shermer (Foreword)

Blast off with Carl as he embarks on a curious journey. An adventure to find the answer to a question that no one seems to be able to give him an answer to. Encouraged by his mother, Carl's mission takes him to a wonderful place where imagination can run rampant and answers can be found. Destination--The Public Library! He finds the answer he is looking for and more in this creative and extraordinary tale based on actual events in the life of Carl Sagan.

24 pages, Hardcover

Published September 18, 2018

Reviews

[✨Arline✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this little book. Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed. The poetry wasn't consistent which made it difficult to read aloud to my 6yo. The pictures were done in a rather B- way--computer pictures stuck on top of one another, not original looking art. (Hard to explain.) Plus, the book didn't really have a point. It didn't explicit state the thing that seemed to be the most important thing. I still don't know exactly what Carl's big question was.

[Rob Chappell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here is a highly imaginative, yet fact-based, tale about the young Carl Sagan and his discovery of the scientific worldview. More specifically, he learns about the stars (in the sky!) from a book that he found in the public library. (Needless to say, this book is a GREAT commercial for libraries and librarians!) :)

The illustrations are delightful and almost whimsical, and there is a foreword by an admirer of Carl Sagan, along with an afterword about Carl Sagan's life and achievements in the scientific realm (both as an astronomer and as a science communicator). I had one minor philosophical problem with the writing in this book, which seems to presuppose that science is the ONLY tool that we can use to find out "how the world really is." Science has indeed presented us with an amazing worldview that has enhanced our lives in manifold ways, but it's not the only highway to truth, and science can peacefully and productively coexist with other ways of knowing, such as philosophy and spirituality.

However, this is a book about science, so I'll say no more about these other ways of knowing (for now), except to confess that I'm a Neoplatonist when it comes to philosophy and a Trinitarian Universalist when it comes to spirituality. :)

[Pamela Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series looks terrific! This biography tells of Carl Sagan's childhood and what prompted his interest in space. Great for younger students.