Look Up!

Rocket wants to be the greatest astronaut, star-catcher and space-traveller who has ever lived, just like Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman in space.

She’s so excited about seeing a meteor shower that she makes an announcement over the supermarket loudspeaker when the cashier isn’t looking, and hands out flyers to her fellow shoppers, much to her older brother Jamal’s disdain – after all, Jamal prefers to be looking down at his phone most of the time and not up at the stars. And when Jamal gets too into his gaming to take Rocket to the park to watch the meteor shower, what will she do? Fortunately a knock at the door provides a joyous solution…

Nathan Bryon and Dapo Adeola’s charming picture book gifts us with a gorgeous character in Rocket, a girl whose passion for all things space is as inspiring to the reader as her heroine Mae Jemison is to her. Adeola has a real talent for portraying expression, from teen Jamal’s sulks to Rocket’s jubilation at watching the stars.

Sprinkled with facts about meteors and space, this charming picture book is also a lovely representation of family, sibling relationships and one girl’s infectious enthusiasm.

What to read after... Look Up!