This remarkable picture book, previously published with the title "The Sea of Tranquility," is now reissued in time to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1969 moon landing. Full color.
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Originally published in the U.K. in 1996, this spare, emotive story recreates Haddon's (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) experience of watching the Apollo 11 landing. Birmingham's (The Snow Queen) soft-focus, light-infused pictures reveal Haddon's preoccupation with outer space as a boy (he compiles a scrapbook of photos and newspaper clippings, imagines exploring the moon and poses in the snow beside a red, white and blue shirt hanging from a pole-a pretend flag). After staying up to watch the space landing on TV, the boy "went to bed at dawn.... and in his dreams he walked with them." Together, words and art offer a tribute that is at once personal and universal. Ages 4-8. (Mar.) Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
From: Reed Elsevier Inc.
Copyright Reed Business Information
K-Gr 3-First released in Britain in 1996, Haddon's work has been reissued and re-titled to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Moon landing. The author recalls his childhood fascination with space and the thrill he had watching two astronauts "bouncing slowly through the dust in the Sea of Tranquility like giants in slow motion." The book ends with the author, now an adult, thinking back on the footprints that those brave men left behind. Young readers will identify with the boy's interest in the solar system, particularly the Moon. Birmingham's nostalgia-tinged illustrations have a dreamlike quality and provide readers a glimpse into both the boy's and astronauts' separate worlds until, in a wonderful spread, both worlds join as a third tiny astronaut is seen bouncing on the Moon with Armstrong and Aldrin. The pairing of text and art creates a wonderful read-aloud with which to celebrate a milestone in the history of mankind.-Maura Bresnahan, High Plain Elementary School, Andover, MA Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
From: Reed Elsevier Inc.
Copyright Reed Business Information