June 1, 2024
Preschool-Grade 3 In this picture book, NASA scientists discover an asteroid that has entered our solar system and may collide with Earth. After determining that it would take too long to build a manned spaceship, they suggest sending Meteor, the lead character in Mousetronaut Goes to Mars (2013), and two other Mousetronauts to crew a much smaller spaceship and nudge the asteroid off course while it is still far away. The president orders them to send three well-trained mice to do the job. Newton and Nova join Meteor for intensive training, and then they blast off and carry out their mission successfully. Unfortunately, their ship is damaged, and they must land on the moon, but Mousetronaut fans can be sure of a happy ending here as well. Well-drawn and beautifully shaded, the illustrations are full of color and drama. Kelly, an experienced astronaut and the author of several children's books, offers a lively, space-based adventure story, followed by a detailed afterword that separates fact from fiction and guides readers to recommended space-based reading, both the imaginative and the informational.
COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
August 1, 2024
In senator and former astronaut Kelly's latest, NASA's smallest space traveler undertakes his third, and so far most important, space mission. News of a huge asteroid hurtling toward Earth sends Meteor the Mousetronaut--at the head of a likewise furry crew from MASA (the Mousetronaut Advanced School of Aeronautics)--blasting into space for a try at nudging the massive rock away from its deadly course. The mission is successful but takes a suspenseful turn when damaged heat shields necessitate an unplanned landing on the moon and a rescue mission from Earth. As on previous missions, Kelly loads his astrotale and its lengthy afterword with astronomical and technical data related to solar system dynamics, Mars (where the expedition lands for a quick refueling) and other planets, plotting trajectories, and actual missions and plans designed to cope with both the problem of orbital debris and with the all-too-real threat of a major meteor strike. Payne adds an overview of the planets and their orbits to realistically detailed views of mice in spacesuits and racially diverse groups of human space experts and government officials, including the white-presenting president herself in her oval office. A mighty mouse displays the right stuff once again. (further reading, websites)(Picture book. 7-9)
COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.