Mars Is: Stark Slopes, Silvery Snow, and Startling Surprises by Suzanne Slade (9781682631881)

Taking photos from the HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) that began orbiting Mars in 2006, this nonfiction picture book gives an intimate look at the planet. The large text in the book continues the Mars is… from the title while smaller text offers scientific details about what the image is revealing about Mars. While the images are all of the surface of Mars, they are unique and different from one another, each showing elements of wind, rock, dunes and craters that tell an even greater history of what has formed the planet.

Slade harnesses the incredible photographs from the HiRISE project with huge impact. The design of the book uses the images as the background for the entire page, allowing readers to get the most out of every image. The variety of images is remarkable too, from the paleness of the sand dunes to the dark drama of the slopes and craters.

Slade’s text allows readers to really understand what each image is showing about Mars and what it reveals about how the planet’s surface has formed and continues to evolve and change. She uses technical terms and explains them clearly, taking readers through the image and inviting them to look at it even more closely. At the end of the book, the HiRISE project is explained.

A fantastic science book that children will love to explore. Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from ARC provided by Peachtree.