In this debut autobiographical picture book, celebrated astronaut Scott Kelly describes how he -- and his twin brother -- grew up to achieve his dream of becoming an astronaut. As Scott Kelly prepares to blast back to Earth after a record-breaking year spent on the International Space Station, he thinks about what brought him here and what awaits him at home. Scott's partner-in-crime is his twin brother, Mark. They spent their childhood getting in and out of scrapes. They had a talent for finding trouble and taking risks, which turned out to be great training for the biggest risk of all -- space travel. Along the way to becoming astronauts, they learned to be peacemakers, to stay calm in the toughest of times, to support their family, to work hard and take small steps towards their goals. Scott learned that he needed people to believe in him, as his principal did, even though he was at first a terrible student who couldn't sit still. All of these skills served him well during his year on the ISS, where he and his crew ran 400 experiments and he himself became a test subject. The sacrifices Scott made, the dangers he faced and the sight of our beautiful planet from space made coming home even sweeter.

The inspiring memoir for young readers about a Latina rocket scientist whose early life was transformed by joining the Girl Scouts and who currently serves as CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA. A meningitis outbreak in their underprivileged neighborhood left Sylvia Acevedo’s family forever altered. As she struggled in the aftermath of loss, young Sylvia’s life transformed when she joined the Brownies. The Girl Scouts taught her how to take control of her world and nourished her love of numbers and science. With new confidence, Sylvia navigated shifting cultural expectations at school and at home, forging her own trail to become one of the first Latinx to graduate with a master's in engineering from Stanford University and going on to become a rocket scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Simultaneously available in Spanish!

Reach for the stars! This engaging book tells kids about the different kinds of stars, what stars are made of, and basic facts about constellations.

Since its birth in 1781, Los Angeles has come to define both the material and spiritual force of American civilization. The American dream is realized, experienced, and lost in the City of Angels. Unmasking L.A.: Third Worlds and the City, an interdisciplinary collection of essays, dialogues, and photographs, seeks to reveal the third world geographies, cultures, and populations of Los Angeles. It examines the social, political, cultural, and literary climate of the city, bringing together diverse responses to the complexities facing Los Angeles from respected intellectuals, writers, and artists such as Mike Davis, Deepak Chopra, and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. By uncovering the forces that marginalize Los Angeles's ever-shifting populations into internal third worlds, the collection unmasks the raw contradictions, the grim paradoxes, and the understated ironies of the global city.

The book that inspired the new film A Million Miles Away. Born into a family of migrant workers, toiling in the fields by the age of six, Jose M. Hernàndez dreamed of traveling through the night skies on a rocket ship. Reaching for the Stars is the inspiring story of how he realized that dream, becoming the first Mexican-American astronaut. Hernàndez didn't speak English till he was 12, and his peers often joined gangs, or skipped school. And yet, by his twenties he was part of an elite team helping develop technology for the early detection of breast cancer. He was turned down by NASA eleven times on his long journey to donning that famous orange space suit. Hernàndez message of hard work, education, perseverance, of "reaching for the stars," makes this a classic American autobiography.

Journey through the night sky on a poetic trip that blends adventure, imagination and science to teach the basics of our solar system. Includes endnotes about the planets, stars, moons, constellations and even a little mythology.

Follow Norah as she brings you on a journey high above the earth and into space. You will learn about space travel, astronaut training and life without gravity. A fun and engaging book about space and becoming an astronaut but most importantly a book about following your dreams no matter how big!

Two incandescent novels set in David Drake's best-selling Hammer's Slammers universe together in one volume for the first time. In Cross the Stars, Captain Don Slade has resigned from active duty with the Slammers and headed home for what he hopes will be peaceful retirement with his son and the woman he loves. And, even if he makes it through all dangers, he'll discover Tethys is not exactly ready to welcome him home with open arms. The journey home is an Odyssey of epic proportions and Don Slade is just the Ulysses to undertake it. In Voyage, Ned Slade has a heck of a name to live up to: that of his uncle Captain Don "Mad Dog" Slade of the legendary mercenary brigade, Hammer's Slammers. But Ned's life takes a turn to adventure when he crews for Lissea Doorman, a trade-ship captain who is sent by her conniving guild masters on what is supposed to be a suicide run. The crew of the good ship Swift is after an ancient alien artifact that could revolutionize star travel and Ned must become the warrior and leader that is his inheritance. Jason and the Argonauts meets gritty science fiction adventure in one of best-seller David Drake's most compelling works. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

A beautifully illustrated collection of nonfiction stories featuring the many wonders that exist in the night sky. Beginning with a sunset and ending at dawn, Through the Night Sky shines a light on the magical events taking place in the darkness above. Unlike an astronomy book that focuses on eye-popping facts and figures about the universe, Through the Night Sky features a series of incredible stories that take place in the sky at night. Track a colony of bats as they fly through the twilight to pollinate the flowers of the mysterious baobab tree, follow a family into the wilderness to gaze at the constellations, watch whales swimming through chilly Arctic waters under the gentle glow of the Northern Lights, then chart the journey of a ship navigating by the stars. Through the Night Sky is a beautiful book that spans a wide range of subjects, including everything from nocturnal animals or revelers watching fireworks illuminate the night, to celestial objects such as the moon, planets, stars, and meteor showers--all under the vast night sky.

Robert Jastrow discusses the past and future of space exploration, the cosmic mysteries that still await solution, and the possibility of extraterrestrials whose intelligence far outstrips our own.