Beyond: Discoveries from the Outer Reaches of Space

by Miranda Paul, Sija Hong (Illustrator)

Overview

Journey far beyond our solar system and explore the marvels of interstellar space. A wonder-filled poem and spectacular illustrations bring readers across the observable universe to encounter dwarf planets, black holes, brand-new stars, and other incredible phenomena. Award-winning author Miranda Paul and illustrator Sija Hong present a fresh and fascinating journey to the outer reaches of outer space.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781728427317
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/06/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	36 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	7 - 8 Years

About the Author

Miranda Paul is the award-winning author of more than a dozen books for children, including One Plastic Bag and Boston Globe–Horn Book Honoree Nine Months Before a Baby Is Born. Miranda is a founding member of We Need Diverse Books and serves as its mentorship chair. Learn more at mirandapaul.com.
Sija Hong is an award-winning Chinese illustrator who once dreamed of being an astronaut. As she created this book, she drew on all her love and passion for the universe. The scope of her work includes magazines, murals, games, and apps as well as books. Sija lives in New York City, and Beyond is her US debut. sijahong.com

Editorial Reviews

"[S]pectacular illustrations and awe-filled verse that portray and describe distant nebulae, black holes, exoplanets, and star clusters."—The Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher

04/01/2021

Gr 1–3—This title provides a poetic trip into the universe and well beyond our solar system. The poetic language is appealing, but it's unlikely that it would be understood by the target audience—primary grade children. Older readers would also need a great deal of background information about the universe to understand the text. Lines such as "The frigid glitter of a trillion comets/ zooms in a cosmic ring./ Dwarf planets with tiny moons and atmospheres that freeze and fall/ bring action and excitement" raise more questions than they answer. The text lacks the informational components to help readers understand what is being described and illustrated. The back matter provides clarifying information, but it is unlikely to be understood by young readers. Also, it is hard to know which informative paragraph corresponds to which page. The colorful illustrations are mysterious and luminous, but could also leave readers with questions. VERDICT The artwork and the poetic language are intriguing, but this book requires much more background information than most, if not all, children possess.—Myra Zarnowski, City Univ. of New York

School Library Journal

2021-03-02
Poems celebrate astronomical subjects while illustrations hint at them.

Moving from Earth’s relatively nearby neighbors to the edge of the observable universe, dreamy meanderings attempt to evoke the wonder of the cosmos. The text looks like verse but reads like prose; it would work well as narration from a dramatic planetarium guide. Some sentences slide smoothly off the tongue: “The frigid glitter of a trillion comets / zooms in a cosmic ring.” Others frustrate any attempts to find deliberate rhythm: “Dwarf planets with tiny moons and atmospheres that freeze and fall / bring action and excitement.” More abstract than realistic, illustrations combine textures, washes, dots, and curlicues in contrasting shades of white, black, and purple. The effect, though occasionally clunky, is luminous and interesting. Informative labels appear alongside poetic descriptions of stars and galaxies, giving their names and distances from Earth. Though helpful, these captions occupy colored circles that disrupt the art. It’s hard to know what to make of one confusing double-page spread that features a haphazard smattering of three stanzas and five accompanying labels. Six pages of endmatter offer facts and details about the celestial bodies that inspired the poetry, pitched at readers who understand basic astronomy but won’t be bothered by oversimplifications like “clouds that rain rubies and sapphires.” A cute section gives “our cosmic address” in a hypothetical universal postal format.

An ambitious effort—but overall a puzzler. (further information, author's note, illustrator's note, further reading, selected bibliography) (Informational picture book. 6-11)

Kirkus Reviews