Review sponsored* by Carole P. Roman
The Children’s Book Review | February 18, 2017
Written by Carole P. Roman
Illustrated by Mateya Arkova
Age Range: 5-10
Paperback: 44 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (2017)
ISBN: 978-1540869722
What to expect: Space Travel, Space Exploration, Non-Fiction, and Mars
For the first time in her award-winning series, Carole P. Roman is taking readers into the future. She aimed for the stars with this latest book, and she made it all the way to Mars. In this book, readers will get to travel to Mars via spaceship and call themselves Martians. Keeping in mind that they will not return to Earth for almost two years while they await the realignment of the planets that allows for a quick and safe return trip, a Mars Living Module becomes their new home.
Readers will discover why Mars is referred to as the Red Planet, how many moons it has, the length of a Mars day and year, and the average temperature. Readers will also learn about the different seasons on the southern and northern hemispheres of the planet, and the infamous dust storms that frequently occur.
Roman often makes comparisons between Mars and Earth, which make the learning aspects easily comprehensible. When explaining gravity, she describes how kids would be able to jump three times higher on Mars than on planet Earth. She adds, “Basketball is a lot of fun on the surface of Mars.” A pronunciation guide with explanations is also included for the scientific terminology that peppers the text. Her humor and understanding of children is authentic:
“Your father is a scientist who plans to help farm the red planet. He would plant seeds in a room filled with both Earth and Martian soil. Scientists have tested the soil for years and are confident you would be able to eat crops of potatoes, radishes, and peas grown in your settlement. You are thrilled the experiment with spinach didn’t work, and they left those seeds back on Earth.”
There are certainly some dangers to living on Mars, but Mateya Arkova’s illustrations are colorful and uplifting and keep kids feeling unruffled when some of the slightly more alarming concepts (dust storms, an active volcano, not being able to breathe without special equipment) are discussed. She has created a glowing and inviting image of the red planet.
There is no doubt that If You Were Me and Lived On … Mars will make an excellent addition to the home library of any young astronomer. How many readers of this book will, indeed, end up visiting Mars? While we can’t answer that question, we do know it will inspire many to dream of it.
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About Carole P. Roman
Carole P. Roman
Carole P. Roman is the award-winning author of the Captain No Beard series. Both Captain No Beard: An Imaginary Tale of a Pirate’s Life and Captain No Beard and the Aurora Borealis have received the Kirkus Star of Exceptional Merit. The first book in the series was named to Kirkus Reviews Best 2012. Captain No Beard and the Aurora Borealis has been named to Kirkus Reviews Best of 2015. Each book in the series has won numerous awards including the NABE Pinnacle Award, IAN Award, Moonbeam Award 2014, National Indie Excellence Award Finalist, Shelf Media Outstanding Series Award, ForeWord Review Five Star and Finalist in the Book of the Year, and Reader’s Views Children’s Book of the Year 2013. Roman is also the author of the award-winning non-fiction culture series, If You Were Me and Lived in… that explores customs and cultures around the world. She has co-authored a self help book, Navigating Indieworld: A Beginners Guide to Self-Publishing and Marketing. She lives on Long Island with her husband and near her children and grandchildren.
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Dedicated Reviews allow authors and illustrators to gain prompt visibility for their work. The author of “If You Were Me and Lived on … Mars,” Carole P. Roman, paid for this non-biased review. Learn more about getting a book review …