Moonwalkers by Mark Greenwood
Illustrated by Terry Denton.
Penguin Random House Australia, 2019. ISBN 9780143793557.
(Ages: 5-8) Recommended. Themes: Apollo 11 moon landing, Imaginative play. 2019 is the fiftieth anniversary of the first humans
walking on the moon but this new publication also comes amidst the
imminent growth of Australia's own space industry. The book looks at
the moon landing in a playful way, as three kids growing up near
'The Dish' in outback Australia focus their imaginative play and
creations around all things space. They are clearly fascinated by
the idea of space travel: building model rockets, playing astronauts
and simulating their own moon landing. When it comes time for the
real landing, they gather in front of the television with their
parents and watch as the astronauts step down the ladder and onto
the moon. This really recreates what it would have felt like as a
kid when this happened: their excitement and wonder are palpable.
There are toys and stuff all over the ground, the kids are just
having the time of their life and the parents seem laidback and
encouraging of the children and their play. It harks back to a
simpler time, when the world was an open book, full of
possibilities; as we should all feel as children I guess!
There is a tried and tested collaborative partnership between Denton
and Greenwood that works perfectly again here. Busy, fun
illustrations and touches of humour and interesting additions make
this appealing for all young children learning about and already
fascinated by space exploration. All the technical detail is
relegated to the front and back pages (a short introduction to the
mission and the astronauts at the beginning and a flowchart and a
few other facts at the end). Young children of today are growing up
with parents who don't have first-hand memory of the moon landing to
pass on and who probably take it for granted, so it's an important
milestone to share. It also reminds us of a time when Australia's
involvement in space was significant, at a time when there is
once again a promising future (perhaps we can encourage those
astronaut dreams again!).
Teachers'
notes are available.
Nicole Nelson