SPACE BOY

When the cacophony of the household becomes too much for sleepy Nicholas, he spaces out, aboard a rocket ship to the moon. Nicholas is trying to go to sleep, but he can hear his baby sister crying, the dog barking and the radio blaring. Taking the situation in hand, he makes a snack, dons his space suit and boards his rocket. After a brief flight, he lands safely on the moon. He has trouble eating his snack as gravity is a bit scarce, but, he thinks, at least it’s quiet. It isn’t long, though, before he’s yearning for earth and home. Upon his return, things have quieted down considerably and he’s contented to have the moon outside his bedroom window. Landry’s text is wordy in places, but the reading is light. The spare and jovial watercolor illustrations brightly feature a nifty rocket and moonscapes surrounded by the starry universe. This has all the elements of a far-out bedtime read, including an understanding of the need to delay the inevitable (bedtime), buoyantly combined with space travel and moon walks. (Picture book. 3-7)