l to r: James Gladstone and Yaara Eshet

I Wonder About Worlds: Discovering Planets and Exoplanets combines storytelling and science in a picture book that encourages re-reading. Author James Gladstone balances a lyrical exploration of space – both of our own solar system and beyond, as the narrator of the story flies from Earth into the Milky Way – with informational call-outs. Readers can choose to ignore the call-outs and follow the narrative all the way to a distant planet and back home again; or they can linger to learn more about the astronomical phenomena featured on the page as the narrator flies past them. The book holds up to either approach. As young readers learn more about the universe they live in, there are also opportunities to turn back the pages and reflect on the ways in which exoplanets – planets outside of our solar system – show similarities to or differences from the planets we’re more familiar with.

The book is illustrated by Yaara Eshet, who has collaborated with Gladstone on other astronomy-based projects (Journey Around the Sun: The Story of Halley’s Comet and A Star Explodes: The Story of Supernova 1054). Her dynamic illustrations feature fantastical details that may help readers less interested in science connect with the content. For example, when the narrator takes off in their spaceship, they’re accompanied by a fox sidekick, and as the narrator returns from their galactic adventure, we are given a view of the International Space Station in orbit. 

Illustration: Yaara Eshet.

Although I Wonder About Worlds does not give an exhaustive account of types of exoplanets, it is a good introduction to the types of planets astronomers have identified. Gladstone, who consulted with Paul A. Delaney, professor emeritus of physics and astronomy at York University, on the scientific aspects of the book, also includes backmatter with additional information about the solar system, which will be especially useful in the classroom. As will Gladstone’s concluding question, meant to prompt discussion: “What do you, the reader, wonder about worlds?” This book is a good resource for teachers and librarians looking to add material that bridges the gap between fiction and nonfiction, and for parents of children fascinated with space.