Blast Off Into Space Like Mae Jemison by Caroline Moss, illustrated by Sinem Erkas - NO

Blast Off Into Space Like Mae Jemison by Caroline Moss, illustrated by Sinem Erkas, 64 pages. BIOGRAPHY Frances Lincoln ,2020. $16. 

Content: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - NOT RECOMMENDED 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW 

Mae Jemison was a doctor a dancer and an astronaut! She grew up with supportive parents who encouraged her to reach for her dreams. As a young woman of color, she struggled to find that same encouragement outside her home, but she worked hard - attending Stanford University at just 16, and eventually realized her dreams of working for NASA. 

I loved the collage illustrations, but struggled with the text. Told in a conversational voice, many of the word choices (fruition? naysayer?) were too difficult for the intended audience, while others (oozing gooey pus) seemed to talk down to them. Sometimes the narrator is telling the story, other times talking directly to the reader, or commenting on the story.  I also found errors that an editor should have spotted (misuse of the word site - should have been "sight"  - among others)  Finding it hard to recommend.

Lisa Librarian