Once Upon a Star: A Poetic Journey Through Space

Having read and enjoyed Once upon a Raindrop by James Carter, I was pleased to see the publication of this book about space. The book provides a good introduction to young children to the Big Bang and the origins of life on Earth. The author combines poetry with non fiction to create a 'poetic journey through space'. Children will enjoy the rhythmic, rhyming nature of the text. I love the colour pallet used in the striking illustrations by Mar Hernandez. Combined with the lovely textured feel of the front cover, the book has an attractive 'vintage' quality to it. My favourite illustration is the double page which accompanies the text 'Then life swam, crawled, flew'. As in James Carter's book The Big Beyond, the author uses an acrostic poem to share facts about the Sun with the reader. This is a great example of an acrostic poem that could be used as a model when exploring poetry with young children. The book will complement a classroom collection of texts around a space theme in KS1. Picture book / Ages 5+ / Reviewed by Leia Sands, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 5+