Goodnight, Astronaut

by Scott Kelly, Izzy Burton (Illustrator)

Overview

“Beautifully written, making a prominent figure readily accessible to children.” -School Library Journal

The second picture book from astronaut Scott Kelly follows his adventure-seeking travels through some of the wild places he's slept! Young readers will be delighted by the playful text and encouraging message to dream of the stars.

Scott Kelly was born for adventure. But exploring takes a lot of enery—and sleep is the super fuel to turbocharge dreams. Luckily, sleeping can be exciting if you're drifting off in the right place.

Scott has fallen asleep at the bottom of the ocean, in the cockpit of an F-14 fighter jet, in a yurt on Mount Everest, and of course in space! Join Scott on his many adventures, and maybe they'll inspire dreams of your own!

This sweet and adventurous story is the perfect bedtime tale for future astronauts and adventurers!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781524764289
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	02/02/2021
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	435,092
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.30(d)
Lexile:	AD890L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

SCOTT KELLY is a NASA astronaut best known for spending a record-breaking year in space. He is a former US Navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and veteran of four spaceflights. Kelly commanded the space shuttle Endeavour in 2007 and twice commanded the International Space Station. He lives in Houston, Texas. You can follow him on Facebook at NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly, and on Instagram and Twitter at @StationCDRKelly. Visit him at scottkelly.com.

Izzy Burton is a BAFTA-nominated director in animation who spends her time dreaming up stories and creating art for them—in both films and books. Her favorite movies are Interstellar and (most of) the Star Wars saga, so it's been her absolute dream to illustrate a book about space with a real spaceman! (Yes, she's still excited.) Visit her at izzyburton.co.uk.

Editorial Reviews

02/01/2021

Kelly’s second picture book starts as a memoir and ends as a motivational treatise. He begins in his childhood bedroom and backyard, where he and his identical twin play at being astronauts, then moves to his growing independence as a teenager, his Navy service, and his rigorous astronaut training. The storytelling strives to create an arc by connecting the many sleeping places that Kelly has occupied throughout his adventurous life, a final page landing readers in the bedroom of another child dreaming of an interstellar career. But text that’s overly assumptive about readers’ familiarity with Kelly muddles this interesting life’s trajectory. Burton’s cheery digital cartooning provides narrative ballast, grounding the story in a counterbalancing realism. Ages 3–7. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

★ 02/01/2021

K-Gr 3—Burton's bright scenes of many of the places the astronaut and author Kelly has slept while growing up with dreams of spaceflight create cozy alcoves from straps and cords, as well as tents and submerged structures. Kelly tells in quite lyrical language of his and brother's childhoods and journeys to space: "Sliding silently through the sea, we patrol the depths under the crushing weight of water, safe in a long metal tube with no day and no night." They were active, busy children dreaming of space, and doing the hard work to get there; Kelly spent time as a sailor, a pilot, an aquanaut, and finally an astronaut. Burton's digital illustrations add magic and wonder to the text in full- and half-page spreads, depicting scenes under the northern lights, and in a spaceship, just to name two. The narrator concludes by encouraging readers to dream big. This book is a beautifully written, making a prominent figure readily accessible to children. VERDICT A necessary purchase and thoughtful meditation, for avid fans of space exploration and newbies alike.—Kelsey Socha, Westfield Athenaeum, Westfield, MA

School Library Journal

2020-11-18
From childhood, an astronaut dreamed of adventurous exploration.

Famed NASA astronaut Kelly played imaginative games with his twin brother, Mark (also an astronaut), from the time they were kids, presaging both men’s future space careers by wearing cardboard-box helmets. Their mother supported their high-flying dreams at bedtime. Ever entranced by the sky, the brothers imagined aboveground adventures in the backyard treehouse and on a family cruise, where they fantasized about being weightless as the boat was tossed by the waves. In adulthood, Kelly undertook hardier journeys, and his dreams continued to spark his longings for space navigation: He steered Navy vessels and piloted jets; camped out in icy climates and explored the seas; and climbed Mount Everest. Kelly attained his astronaut goal by joining the crew of the space shuttle Discovery, then earned renown for his yearlong stint on the International Space Station. Though Kelly acknowledges home is best, he encourages readers to dream about having adventures; a charming concluding illustration features a brown-skinned girl dreaming of myriad possibilities. The engaging, gently poetic text describes the author’s ambitious, lifelong skyward trajectory and his stops along the way to space, helping youngsters understand what goes into astronaut training. Colorful, appealing illustrations capture Kelly’s fascinating odyssey, beginning in childhood, and the starry reaches of space. Scott and Mark Kelly present White; some background characters are people of color. The backmatter includes two pages of color photos. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22-inch double-page spreads viewed at 49.9% of actual size.)

A captivating tale guaranteed to keep youngsters wide awake in wonder. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews

"Kelly tells in quite lyrical language of his and brother’s childhoods and journeys to space...Burton’s digital illustrations add magic and wonder to the text.  A thoughtful meditation, for avid fans of space exploration and newbies alike." —School Library Journal, starred review
 
“A captivating tale guaranteed to keep youngsters wide awake in wonder.” -Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher