Venus

Gorgeous color photos illustrate this book about Venus. I appreciate that Seymour Simon writes matter-of-factly, without a patronizing attitude. There are plenty of facts about Venus.I am impressed by the entire series of picture books by Seymour Simon and our family has been enjoying his books, one about each planet, which we are using as part of our homeschooling. I have found that many of the books that attempt to cover all topics about space end up skimping on important general information that Simon easily communicates, such as the temperature and how it compares to Earth, why humans could not survive on the planet, and the general weather conditions and how they compare to weather on Earth. The way these comparisons are made really helps children understand the conditions on the planets. This series by Simon is also superior to other books about Venus and space because the photos are in color; they are real, stunning photos, not lame illustrations drawn by hand. This book also features images made with data captured by the Pioneer Venus Orbiter spacecraft in 1980, from bouncing radio waves off of the surface of Venus. Photographs taken by the Soviet spacecraft, Venera 13, when it landed on the surface in 1982, shortly before the weather conditions and atmospheric pressure completely destroyed it. Images and information learned from NASA's Magellan in the 1990s is also included in this book.As with all the books in this series, the content begins with what we can see with our naked eye from Earth (Venus looks like a brightest star in the night sky). I highly recommend that any parent read these books to their children. Teachers and homeschoolers would find this book a wonderful book to use while teaching about Venus.