Meanwhile Back on Earth . . .

September 1, 2022
A car trip through space becomes a journey back in time. Keeping to a steady 37 miles an hour as they motor into the sky, a light-skinned parent, accompanied by two children squabbling over territory in the back seat, comments that "we humans have always fought each other over space," drawing borders since our planet seemed so big. Readers will certainly see the fallacy in that last notion play out after the parent hangs a left at the moon and, looking back after a 78-year drive to Venus, notes that 78 years ago our entire world was at war. Similarly, the 150 years it would take to reach Mercury marks a time when Africa was being violently divvied up by colonial powers. As a zigzag course passes the sun and each outer planet, other conflicts in the Americas and on back 8,000 years to the end of the latest ice age pass in review, too. But the already-strained conceit collapses at Pluto with the astoundingly facile claim that 11,000 years ago people were "much too busy surviving to bother with fighting each other." Scenes of a sedan wheeling through the vast distances of space past recognizably limned planets alternate with views of tiny figures on battlefields, waving national flags and wielding weapons; the book ends with the family back home, children asleep in parental arms beneath starry skies. The absurdity of humans continually fighting for tiny bits of our tiny planet comes through, but the confusing contradiction of the main premise results in a conclusion that feels less like a resolution than an abrupt loss of interest. (This book was reviewed digitally.) The message is sound, the delivery decidedly otherwise. (timeline) (Picture book. 7-9)

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Starred review from October 1, 2022

PreS-Gr 2-A father takes his children on a road trip through the cosmos with Earth's history in the rearview mirror in this entertaining look at our place in the universe. As siblings battle it out in the back seat, Dad suggests a detour; in the blink of an eye, the family sports spacesuits and points their car towards the moon. Adjusting the mirror, Dad notes that "it's important to keep checking the mirror to see what we're up to back on Earth." Jeffers masterfully captures the universe's vastness while playfully humanizing space by making it a family trip destination, complete with a chatty parent pointing out sights along the way, an I Spy game during the 5,000-year drive to Uranus, and a gleeful coast along Saturn's rings. The artwork puts readers in the driver's seat, where they see the dark expanse of space with brightly colored planets set off against the black background. These views alternate with historical moments that include whimsical characters from Jeffers's previous books What We'll Build and Here We Are. VERDICT A first purchase for all collections.-Rosemary Kiladitis

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2022
Grades K-3 With two kids squabbling over territorial boundaries in the back seat of the car, their father drives onward while lecturing on the distances between significant objects in the solar system and the history of Earth as seen through the lens of territorial conflicts. The car transforms into a car-shaped spaceship and the people inside are suddenly clothed in spacesuits as the driver veers upward (off road and off planet) to demonstrate the distances between Earth and the moon, the sun, and the other planets in our solar system. Simultaneously, he looks in the rearview mirror to observe conflicts on Earth while traveling further back in time. The writing breaks down big concepts into relatively simple parts, while Jeffers' imaginative artwork invites viewers to come along for the ride. A couple of quotes from astronauts offer space-based views of the home planet. Written as part of a large-scale art installation showing the distances between our sun and its planets, the book stands on its own as a challenging but worthwhile exercise in looking at human conflicts from a broader perspective.

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