Postcards from Pluto: A Tour of the Solar System

by Loreen Leedy

Get ready for a breathtaking trip around the solar system! Dr. Quasar, a robot, will be your guide as you ride along with a group of kids who are collecting facts on the planets, their moons, and the asteroids. As kids send postcards back to Earth, you can learn all about Jupiter's mysterious red spot, Saturn's beautiful rings, and all of Earth's fascinating neighbors in space.

Genres: Picture Books, Space, Science, Nonfiction, Astrology, Childrens

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Loreen Leedy is the author and illustrator of over 40 picture books with math, science, language arts, and other curriculum content. Her books showcase information in a kid-friendly format, often with characters and entertaining stories.

Honors and awards for her books include: ALA Notable Book, Science Books and Films finalist, Reading Rainbow feature book, Chicago Library Best of the Best, many Scholastic Book Fair selections, Florida Book Award, Parent's Choice Award, many Junior Library Guild selections, and Outstanding Science Trade Book by the National Science Teachers Association.

Loreen has spoken at hundreds of schools and many conferences such as the International Reading Association, the American Library Association, the Mazza Summer Conference, and the UVU Engaged Reading Forum.

She lives in central Florida with her husband Andy, who is a scientist and a cat named Knickers who has an easily triggered purrometer. They love to travel, read, and watch movies.

Reviews

[Joan]

A friendly robot takes a group of children on a tour of the solar system. Each page focuses on a different part of the solar system; a child-written postcard from each stop along the tour ties the story together. A mini-glossary [on a post card] gives readers some basic space vocabulary.

Older readers will appreciate the play on words in the addresses of each of the postcards: the card from sun sent to Mr. and Mrs. Sol Corona; Venus’s card goes to Debbie DeMilo; the moon’s card goes to Luna Cee; Mars’s card goes to Mr. Martin Greenman. Readers will have fun checking out the destination for each postcard.

Fact-filled and charmingly illustrated, readers interested in space science will find much to appreciate in this book [written before Pluto’s demotion to dwarf planet status].

Highly recommended.

[Colin]

Continuing homeschool science lessons (astronomy) for my little ones (6 & 7 years old at this time) with this book that tells the story of a rocketship tour of the solar system, with kids sending home "postcards" from each stop on the trip. Fun.

[Laura Hoyler]

Great for basic facts about the solar system- updated with Pluto as a dwarf planet.

[Jackie]

Using postcards sent from the planets back home, a group of Dr. Quasar's students travel through space visiting each of the planets. Short snippets of information about each planet is cleverly disguised on the postcard's message.

Also, kids are introduced the correct way to address a postcard.

Used for "Postcards from Home" Storytime: June, 2011.

[Turrean]

A good intro to a unit on the solar system, the book offers a happy blend of fact and fancy. The book was reissued with changes reflecting new discoveries and terminology; a good springboard for a discussion on copyright dates and the ever-changing nature of science.

[Chak]

There are better space books out there, but this was ok.

[Amanda Davenport]

perfect for teaching the solar system

[Debra]

K - 3

Kind of like the Magic School Bus Books - Kids on Tour send postcards back to Earth - Solar System

[Ashley]

This is Porter current favorite book.