Heroism in outer space is the legacy of the lunar mission Apollo 13. On April 11, 1970, astronauts Jim Lovell, Fred Haise, and Jack Swigert were launched into space as the crew of Apollo 13. Their mission, like the missions of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12, was to explore the lunar surface. But that mission was never completed. As they began the procedure for landing on the Moon, the spacecraft was rocked by a violent explosion. Oxygen began pouring out of the Service Module, and the spacecraft began to lose power. Jim Lovell radioed Mission Control with the now-famous words, "Houston, we have a problem." All over the world, people followed the plight of the astronauts. Richard Hilliard examines the crisis of Apollo 13, one of the great survival stories of the space age, in a lively text and dramatic illustrations.
On January 31, 1961, a three-year-old chimpanzee named Ham made history. Strapped inside a Mercury capsule, the little chimp blasted off into the sky, becoming the first intelligent being to ride an American rocket into suborbital space. Ham made a vital contribution to the United States space program. Because there were so many unanswered questions about space travel, scientists could not risk sending humans on a journey into the unknown.
Chimpanzees, however, are very similar to humans in the makeup of their skeletons and internal organs. That made them the perfect space pioneers. Ham forged the way into the outer reaches of space so that human astronauts could follow. In this informative and entertaining book, featuring bold and lively illustrations, Richard Hilliard celebrates the achievement of Ham, the astrochimp and space hero.
"Critically acclaimed author Keith Lee Morris'who has drawn favorable comparisons to Richard Russo and Richard Ford'delivers a stunning collection of stories. In these unforgettable tales of deep humanity, the flaws and strengths of young men are explored with remarkable clarity.
'Morris's prose is polished to transparency and proves surprisingly flexible in terms of tone ' marked by quiet authority and beautifully observed moments.''Publishers Weekly"
Read By: Kevin Orton, Jeffrey Brick, Tony Ward, Jodi Dick, Anthony Crep, Ken Marks
Debut author Alicia Bessette gently blends the lives of two characters to create a sure-to-please recipe of tender insights. When Rose-Ellen's husband dies, she is devastated. Her husband loved cooking, so now she refuses to do so'until she hears about a baking contest sponsored by celebrity chef Polly Pinch. In another part of the duplex where Rose-Ellen lives, nine-year-old Ingrid Knox is convinced that Polly Pinch is the mother she's never met. When chance brings Ingrid and Rose-Ellen together, they form a
friendship that changes their lives.
