Letters from Space

Astronaut Clayton Anderson spent 152 days in space aboard the International Space Station--and while he didn't mail dozens of letters back to Earth (they would have burned up on reentry!), imagine if he did! These letters from space are full of weird science, wild facts, and outrageous true stories from life in space, complete with hysterical illustrations from Susan Batori. Backmatter includes even more interesting information on space, astronauts, and living among the stars.

School Library Journal

With a final page of facts about NASA, astronauts, and living in space, this must-purchase entertains with a combination of zany art, humor, and solid facts for fascinated young readers craving space travel—even the armchair kind.

Kirkus Reviews

A retired astronaut explains what life is like aboard the International Space Station.
Plainly based on memories of his own 5-month space-station mission in 2007, Anderson’s (fictive) letters to family and students not only make reference to scientific work and day-to-day routines, but positively fizz with the sense of being on a great adventure: “I fly to the bathroom—and I even fly when I’m going to the bathroom. So cool!” and “I was like one of those guys who fix wires on utility poles. But in SPACE!” Batori captures the exhilaration with cartoon scenes featuring a diverse crew of pop-eyed humans (plus one green extraterrestrial) in various orientations, joined by various imagined animals (“It would be neat to have a dog or a cat, but what a mess with no gravity!”), floating foodstuffs, and, following an eventual return to Earth, a cheering crowd at a “Welcome Home” party. The author closes with a more-detailed recap, so young readers with serious questions relating to the physiology of space adaptation syndrome are just as well served as those who are keenly interested in how long astronauts have to wear their underwear. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22-inch double-page spreads viewed at 83% of actual size.) A tantalizing taste of the (literally) high life.