My Journey to the Stars

K-Gr 2—Astronaut Kelly recalls the early experiences that led up to his joyful return to Earth in March 2016,after spending nearly a year in space. This picture book biography introduces the wiggly, unfocused student who, with his twin brother Mark, enjoyed risk-taking adventure and learned to stay calm in the face of parental storms. It was Tom Wolfe's biography of the Mercury Seven, The Right Stuff that inspired Kelly to become an astronaut. Both brothers joined NASA in 1996 and flew into space four times—separately, "in case something went wrong." Kelly's long sojourn in the International Space Station (ISS) offered a unique scientific opportunity because Mark remained on Earth as a comparison. The first-person narrative is immediate and relatively simple. It opens with the astronaut entering the tiny space ship that will take him back to Earth, flashes back through childhood and training, and ends with a happy splash in his home swimming pool. Photographs from the Kellys' childhood as well as Scott's time in the ISS are reproduced on appropriate backgrounds. Their realism makes an interesting contrast with Ceolin's smooth digital illustrations and almost featureless figures. Timed to appear alongside his adult memoir, Endurance: A Year in Space this story of his preparation and his experience has well-chosen details and just the right amount of information for his intended audience.