Zoo in the Sky

by Jacqueline Mitton, Christina Balit (Illustrations)

This award-winning book capturing the glittering light show of the constellations is now available in paperback.
Take an illuminating ride through the starry night sky with National Geographic's "Zoo in the Sky!" Little Bear and the Great Bear in the Northern Sky; the scaly dragon winding his long tail; the Great Dog chasing the Hare in the Southern Sky; all are beautifully rendered in Christina Balit's vibrant art, studded with shiny stars, which perfectly illustrates Jacqueline Mitton's rich text.
Awards include: Parent's Guide to Children's Media Award Parent Council Award REVIEW(S): "A visually dynamic introduction to the animal constellations." "Booklist"
"Mitton offers poetic, abbreviated legends of the nighttime sky, while Balit's paintings, highlighted by shimmering silver stars, give visual meaning to the text." "Kirkus Reviews"
"This is an attractive introduction to astronomy... [T]he simple poetic descriptions will capture the attention of preschoolers and early elementary-age children alike. A brief explanation of stars and constellations rounds out this lovely and unusual offering." "School Library Journal""

Genres: Science, Picture Books, Nonfiction, Childrens, Animals, Space, Astronomy

32 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1998

About the author

For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/jacqueli...

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

British physicist Jacqueline Mitton and illustrator Christina Balit team up in this gorgeous picture-book examination of the constellations. Profiling nineteen stellar groupings - eight from the northern sky, eleven from the southern - the book gives a brief description of the location of each, and of the animal they are said to resemble. The decorative endpapers show a star map of the northern and southern skies...

One of a number of picture-books about celestial bodies from Mitton and Balit - other titles include Once Upon a Starry Night: A Book of Constellations , The Planet Gods: Myths and Facts About the Solar System and Zodiac: Celestial Circle of the Sun - Zoo In the Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations was first published in 1998, and appears to have been their first collaboration. I recall looking through it, when it first came out, and, having long been an admirer of Balit's artwork, am glad to have reread it today. The illustrations here are absolutely gorgeous! I would have liked it if there had been more information about the mythological underpinnings of some of these constellation names, or more stories about them, but I still think it makes a good introduction to the general idea of constellations for younger children. For my own part, I have always had some trouble seeing the actual animals, when looking at constellations in the sky, but I still enjoy the idea that others have found such a creative way to identify them. I'd love, at some point, to see some kind of global comparative work, listing the constellation names and configurations from different cultures, over time. Recommended to young sky watchers and star lovers.

[Amanda Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a great book to take camping with the kids.

[Gregory D'Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mom wanted me to keep this. So it stays in my books-i-own, which I will create soon.

[Genesis Princesita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very clear, the illustrations are really appealing, beautiful I must say.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wish the stories were more substantial. The illustrations are lovely.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars -- What lovely, glittering illustrations and an exciting introduction to the night sky!

[Samantha N · Rating 4 out of 5]

1.Parent's Guide to Children's Media Award Parent Council Award

2.Pre-kindergarten -4th Grade

3. This illuminating book will capture the interest of children as the narrative explores the glittering constellations. Reminding children to look up at the starry night sky this books explores different animal shapes from up above. From bears to dragons, and even dogs the vibrant book is a perfect illustration to encourage youth to admire the stars. Short in the text, this book allows children to investigate their curiosities, and use the context of the book in real life when staring up into the sky.

4. I thought this book was inventive and beautifully rendered. Inspecting different parts of the night sky is a creative way to increase engagement in the classroom. This book allows for the introduction of different stars with photographs of constellations and descriptions. For students that are interested in our universe, this book will be informative and engaging for young readers. This book would work wonders in grades Pre-kindergarten- 4th grade and lessons could be tailored to fit the curriculum when introducing realistic fiction. Some fun follow up books are:
“If you decide to go to the Moon” by Faith McNulty
“I want to be an Astronaut” by Byron Barton
“What are stars” by Katie Dayne

5.Zoo in the Sky Themed Lessons:

Space Adventure (1st- 3rd)- Working Independently have the students write what would happen if they went to space. Have them include a fun illustration of their adventure.

Alphabet Star search (Pre-Kindergarten)-Kids can search for the stars while learning the letters of the alphabet with this simple nighttime inspired sensory bin. This activity would be perfect to add to a solar system or space theme. Once a star is found, help the kids name the letter. To extend add an alphabet chart to this activity so kids can place the letters on the chart as they find them. Another option would be to make two sets of letters and kids could find and match them up. Once all the stars are found, kids can return them to the bin and go star searching again.
Accredited:Pre-Kpages.com

My Pet Alien (1st- 2nd Grade)- There is a lot of opportunity for creative writing as well as science writing to show what they have learned about the planets and other space-themed content! This fun prompt will allow children to create and describe their own alien in a fun writers workshop.
Accredited: Mrs. Giraffe

[Ashley Mejia · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Zoo in the Sky" is a nonfiction book intended for 6-9 year old children. It has a parent's guide to children's media award and parents council award. "Zoo in the Sky" shows the different animal constellations in the sky and has a small paragraph on each page explaining where the constellation is located in the sky. The book shows the connected stars over the animals they are showing as well. I rated this book 5 stars because of the information it is conveying to children. I think that this book is an excellent way of teaching children the different animal constellations by explaining where they are located and showing them in that location. The book has an excellent reference page at the end where it shows the Northern and Southern hemisphere sky constellations. It is a perfect book for kids who are interested in learning more about the stars. They can learn that the stars have certain placements and are not just scattered around the sky. This would be a great book to read in a science class or to add to your home collection. This book would also be great for kids who love animals. They could star gaze and find the animals in the sky after reading the book and using the end hemisphere reference pages.
May 14, 2020

[Katie]

This is a fantastic book about real constellations in the night sky that is accompanied by clever blurbs that add to the beautiful illustrations. The illustrations are detailed for each starry animal with bright colors and metallic stars that children love. The animals are studded with where the stars fall on the animal, connecting it to how the constellations look in the sky. This is a useful and illustrative reference that students can use to find the constellation in the night sky. This book would be great to have in the classroom because of the illustrations and how the author describes each animal in the constellation is clever and intriguing to students. It would also pair great along with a study or unit about space or stars. It would be great as a read-aloud or to help students identify constellations in the picture of the northern or southern sky. It would make the study of space richer because constellations are mentioned in a lot of poetry and literature as well as being a scientific topic.

[Nya Savage · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explains popular constellations in relation to animals. At the beginning and end of this book were maps of the southern and northern sky with the associated consolations and the animal in which they signify. This book was structured somewhat as poems that describe the nature of each consolation. This book was very creative in the way in which the information was depicted. It matched the beauty of writing and illustrations with the complexity of the stars and consolations. I learned a lot of facts surrounding consolations including that the zodiac signs are associated with consolations that are present at a given time, being the days in which they represent birthdays. I found it fascinating that the well-known consolation, the big dipper, is associated with the Latin word “Ursa Major” and the little dipper is “Ursa Minor”, also known as the Great Bear and the Little Bear.

[Gabriela Wiborn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a perfect book to include in a classroom for younger students! I would use this book to teach my students about constellations over summer and it was a wonderful tool in the classroom. After we would learn the basics about stars and constellations and finish our activity I would use this book as a read aloud to calm everyone down and tie in our learning objectives from the day. This book is great because it includes old tales on animals seen in the sky through constellations and has beautiful illustrations that are silver from the foil the illustrator used. The kids would always ask to look at the book on their own after the read aloud was over because they enjoyed seeing the individual stars up close and see how they were pulled together to create an image.

[Melissa Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has great potential for inspiring young minds to want to know more about how the stars got their names. Rated for ages 6-10, we like this book mostly for the beautiful artwork. It is all around a pleasant book to read and look at if you are studying the constellations. The story itself does little to help identify the constellations in the night sky, but the star maps inside the covers are some of the best I have found in a children's constellation book.

[Laura Weakland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book outlining the animal constellations in the sky!

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Beautiful pictures. Both hemispheres,
Beautiful Premise.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book with lovely illustrations for the aspiring astronomer.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

it has a star named Mira!

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations. Just wish there was more to the text.

[Katelynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A factual read about constellations with gorgeous illustrations. I learned about a few constellations I didn’t know about while reading this! Educational and pretty.

[Dana Storytime Account · Rating 3 out of 5]

I personally enjoy this book, but it did not hold the attention of my students very well.

[Jenna Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stunning and leads to a great activity where you can make your own constellations

[Marta Dyet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great for when learning about planets (more appropriate for ks2 and above). A cool display board could be made from these illustrations.

[Melanie Gaum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really cool illustrations. I wish the book had included some information on the constellations' myths.

[Veronica Precourt · Rating 3 out of 5]

i like it

[Lynne Zotzmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to read to or let your 6 year old grandson read to you before heading outside on a dark Lake night to view the stars. The book has beautiful illustrations.

[Addie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. Like the illustrations. Too advanced for my two year old.

[Gomez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. Beautiful illustrations and so fun to read both for kids and adults

[Aura Keaton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous illustrations. A wonderful source for introducing anyone to constellations. I only wish there was a story, as a whole, or individual. Visually beautiful anyway.

[Johna Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zoo in the Sky is a great book for teaching a lesson about starts and constellations. The book has beautiful illustrations that are engaging, and the content is informational and interesting. In the story there are animal illustrations in the sky and I like that. Most of the time when you are looking in the sky, you are able to see pictures or imagine that you see different things. In different parts of the story, I would have my students to close their eyes and visualize what is happening in the story. As a teacher, I would use this story to teach students how to use imagery. Imaging is something all readers do without evening noticing. Usually the author will write a book for you to visualize, feel and hear the events that happen within the story. The purpose is for students to be able imagine the story. I would read the story and allow students to visualize what I am reading without showing the illustrations. While I am reading, I will stop to let students share and discuss before proceeding with the story. Students will share with a partner what images they saw while I was reading. After the class has demonstrated the use of imagery, I will read the story a second time and show the illustrations. This time the story will be read with fluency.

[Brigid Keely · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Zoo In The Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations," by Jacqueline Mitton, is a themed book of constellations. It covers a handful of animal-shaped constellations in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. The illustrations are charming, and accented with silver-foil stars, and the text is short and informative and easily readable. There are two pages in the back with a bit more science-heavy information that is above the level of a 4 year old (my audience), but simple enough that I could explain terms and concepts.

We were both a little disappointed that the book didn't include the "real" names of constellations (for example, it mentions the big and little bear but not Ursa Major and Ursa Minor; it mentions The Dragon but not Draco). But most astronomy books we've looked at cover ONLY the Northern hemisphere (which is where we live) so it was exciting seeing the Southern hemisphere covered as well.

[Lagobond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous, and I mean gorgeous!!! illustrations. So much detail, such beautiful colors, and the elegant borders tie everything together. And of course the shining stars are the cherry on top. The text is really soothing somehow. We read this at bedtime, and I found that the night-sky background of the large pictures really works well to help a person settle down for sleep.

I think the book would be even better if the text portion of each double-page spread were on the same side each time (so the reader doesn't have to switch back and forth). Also I didn't like the black text on a stark white background, because it detracts from the sense of calm that is created by the dark images. This might not have been as much of an issue for me if I had read the book in the daytime, but I think a more subdued color scheme for the text would have made this a 5-star bedtime book.