Professor Astro Cat's Frontiers of Space

I am going to have to contact the publisher or someone on this book - it stinks. Literally. The smell is so strong and I cannot have a toxic child's book. I have never gotten a book that smells this bad, and we have literally hundreds of books. The inside is packed with info - so if you have a sensory kid who cannot handle too much to take in, this would not be the book for your child, nor the smell either. Otherwise . . . . . it seems to be a very informative book. I will try to make contact with someone and figure out the cause of the bad smell, and then try to get back here to update this review. Usually bad smells equate with toxic products in my experience - the ink, the glue - not sure but I will find out.UPDATE: After not hearing back from this publisher for 4 months I sent another email to them which got me some attention, finally, on this issue of the smell. I asked for a list of the ingredients which they were not able to produce. Instead, they sent me a certificate basically saying there are toxic materials used in this book but they are under the "safety limit guidelines" not exceeding the limit of 100mg/kg. Here is my response to them:"Please understand that in today's world there are MANY children that are VERY sensitive. The "safety standards" set by most governments, have not be been re-set in order to meet the current changes in the general public, especially the younger generations, as we live in an overly toxic world. According to the latest research, such a toxic world has created detoxification issues in 60% to 80% of the current population, which shows up clearly in genotype testing. This book IS toxic. I have never smelled such strong fumes on a new book before. NEVER. What this certificate shows, is that there ARE toxins in the book. A safety standard for toxins is ridiculous, as when you have toxins everywhere (as the world now in fact does), they add up and no longer fit into the "ranges" but rather fall far from such ranges. This is not rocket science. Your company is not only unaware, but they are behind on a very important and responsible effort, world wide to go green. And this is a CHILDREN'S book. But your company responds, "It meets the safety standards" and continues to come from an outdated and dangerous mindset. I will surely make an effort never to purchase books by this publisher again. Sadly. I am not only ashamed of your company, but beyond disappointed.Please make sure we are refunded - Amazon US, and thank you for your time."The certificate of conformity I am unable to get posted here but it basically says they "guarantee the total content of toxic heavy metals lead, cadmium, mercury, and chromium (VI) in printing inks, varnishes, and printing additives labeled with the hubergroup brand and supplied by European companies is below the CONEG limit of 100mg/kg(ppm)."A great example of conformity on set safety standards is fluoride. Added to the water in some cities, it is of course distributed under a set safety limit. Yet, how can anyone measure the amount of water someone, a child, is drinking, plus fluoride from toothpaste, etc...? You cannot. Thus there are some who are far over that limit. And, in the last year, fluoride has been confirmed, in none other than Europe's distinguished Lancet Medical Journal as a neurotoxin, just like some of those toxins used in the printing ink of this book. No thanks!

The whole series is extremely well done! The books are great for young readers who love to learn about nature, science, space etc. the illustrations are extremely nice. Everytime we read the book we discover something new.

My 2 year old loves this book. I brought it out to give her early exposure to science and she quickly learned to identify astronauts, Saturn, and Earth. She even invented a story about sad Pluto. I had expected a couple more years before she would really get into this book, but she asks for the "Space Book" often. The drawings are cute, the subject is interesting, and the details provide an amazing entry into the subject. I expect to read this with her for many years to come

This book is great for kids interested in space. I love the art work

I bought this book for Seth, whose review is below. I selected it because of the good reviews and the credentials of the author. I enjoyed it and my husband did also.Here is what Seth said."It tells us about how the universe started with a big bang. It tells us how our stars formed. It tells us about Apollo 11 and who was on it. It tells us what space is like. I LOVED IT.".

This series of books is really very well done. We love them and will continue to buy any new ones that come out. Very good job making a book about space without making it boring or overly simplified. My daughter loves the illustrations and fun explanations and I love how well they incorporate very technical information and make it accessible for a young audience!

We had gotten this book from the library and liked it so much we decided to buy it. This book is informative, fun, and engaging - a great way to get little ones interested in space (and probably is good for older kids too). My son loved reading this as a young 4 yo.

My daughter loves space, and even though we have a couple other space info books, we love this one, too. Great illustrations and a good balance of technical and simplified language and information (for our 6-7 year old). Very elegant design, sturdy book with some humor and adorable art.

Told in a chatty way, as if the Professor is talking directly to you, the book talks through many topics including the universe, birth of a star, galaxies, the sun, solar system and all the different planets, space travel, telescopes, the death of stars and the future. Each page is jam packed with information told in little nuggets with illustrations and also graphics to explain things. There are also funny pictures of Professor Astro Cat along the way to liven things up, but not in too childish a way – more comic like. The colours are muted but the pages feel lush and textured, so that you almost feel as if you’re looking through an art book, but about space. There are nice touches, such as explaining how big the planets would be if Earth was a cherry tomato, and using a balloon to show how a rocket works. There is so much information in this book that it has striking longevity and yet at no time seems overwhelming. The humour jumps out of every page too. A clever book, teaching facts while inspiring children. There isn’t an index, and I couldn’t find information on a solar eclipse, but I was struck by the illustrations and guide to constellations, and spent a great deal of time looking at this. Aged 8 and over. http://www.minervareads.com/?p=774

My daughter gave this to my husband (an aerospace lecturer) for his birthday. We were all impressed with this book. Honestly, the price tag seems a bit hefty, especially online you can't see (or feel) what you are getting. However, the book feels expensive: it is bound well, the paper is thick and very good quality. The illustrations are good, the science is good.... Any adult should be proud to display this on their coffee table. It is not the sort of disposable book to give to a young kid for them to destroy.I'd say this is a must have for someone, adult or otherwise, who's got an interest in the subject. The Atomic Adventure is on my birthday wish list...

I found this book quite by accident and so pleased I did.From the beautiful artwork with lots of recurring themes for children to spot throughout to the well presented and easy to absorb facts, there is nothing to dislike. One of those books that proves to me there is still a place for traditional hard-cover books, especially for sharing with the kids in a way an e-book just can't.Highly recommended.

A stunning book worth stocking up on. So brilliantly illustrated by Ben Newman that you'll want a copy for yourself.Perfect for 4 years up. I've bought and given away 3 already and the 9 y/o fella was so excited he showed it to his class, while the 4 year old just paws through it, nightly. A great introduction to curiosity about spaaaaaaaaace

Borrowed this book from the library and the kids loved it so much I bought it. 6 and 3 year old fascinated with it and have learnt loads about space. 3 year old can now reel off the planets in the right order. A bedtime story favourite.