Using illustrations and NASA photographs, this book helps you navigate the night sky — spring, summer, fall, and winter. In two parts the author breaks it down to “What’s Up There?” and “Exploring What’s Up There”.

In part one you can find out about stars, the Sun, planets, asteroids, meteors, and galaxies. Then you move on to more mysterious stuff: gravity, dark matter, black holes, and something “neu”. In the second section you’ll learn about the tools astronomers and astronauts use to explore space. Sprinkled throughout the text are definitions for unfamiliar words and some basic astronomy history lessons.

The book’s cover was illustrated and the colours were slightly metallic so it looked inviting to read. The topic was interesting too, even if you (unlike me) do not like astronomy. You can’t help but keep reading and may (horror of horrors) even start to enjoy it, probably on account of the cartoons and writing style.

What I liked most was the author’s ability to mix science and humour. The cartoons were funny and the glow-in-the-dark stickers were cool. The Astronomy All-stars and Deep-space Dictionary sections were interesting too. The writing was the same style as YES Mag. So if you like YES Mag, this is for you.

I didn’t like how long the book was. It had great information, but it got boring. Although I did have fun and I learned a lot from reading the book. For example, did you know Jupiter does not have the only great spot? Uranus has a great white spot and Neptune has a great dark spot.

Overall I really liked the book. I wouldn’t change the length of the book because the information can’t fit in a smaller space. I give the book a score of 9.5. In one word I would describe the book as humourous-scientific.

(Originally published in the Sept/Oct 2005 issue of YES Mag.)