Your Place in the Universe

by Jason Chin

Your Place in the Universe introduces readers to the mind-boggling scale of the known Universe.

Most eight-year-olds are about five times as tall as this book... but only half as tall as an ostrich, which is half as tall as a giraffe... twenty times smaller than a California Redwood! How do they compare to the tallest buildings? To Mt. Everest? To stars, galaxy clusters, and . . . the universe?

Genres: Picture Books, Nonfiction, Science, Space, Childrens, Mathematics, Nature

40 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2020

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

The wonderfully talented picture-book author and artist Jason Chin, who was awarded a Caldecott Honor for his Grand Canyon , examines comparative size and distance, and the human place in the universe in this informative new title. Using the average eight-year-old human child as a starting point - 50 inches/127 centimeters - he begins a series of comparisons - child to ostrich, ostrich to giraffe, and so on - that utilize creatures and objects of ever greater size. From creature to mountain, mountain to planet, planet to solar system, solar system to galaxy, galaxy to galaxy group, galaxy group to cosmic web, cosmic web to universe - the journey expands almost beyond the power of the human mind to imagine, before returning to those small children, and to the young reader, all now situated in the vastness of the cosmos. The book closes with an informational afterword covering the science behind the journey explored in the main narrative, as well as an author's note, and list of further sources...

Your Place in the Universe is the ninth book I have read that featured Jason Chin's gorgeous artwork, and the sixth that he both wrote and illustrated. Given my great enjoyment of his previous works, I fully expected to love this one, and I was not disappointed. I appreciated the pairing of wonder-filled, informative narrative with lovely illustrations here, and think that this would make a wonderful introduction to ideas of size and scale, and to the subject of the vastness of space, for younger children. Some of my favorite books from Chin - Redwoods , Coral Reefs , Grand Canyon - pair fictional and non-fictional narratives in interesting ways, centering the child and the child's sense of wonder at the world. Although there is no real fictional narrative here, I do feel that Chin still centers the child (and his young readers), by starting and ending with eight-year-olds. More than simply an informational book about space, this is a title to make children wonder at the vastness of space, at their own smallness, and at the marvelous gift we all have been given, in this planet we call home. Highly recommended to all picture-book readers looking for titles addressing size and scale, and the majesty and wonder of the universe, and our place in it.

[Tatiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love a picture book that can teach me something new.

[Arghiiw · Rating 2 out of 5]

می‌تونست جالب‌تر باشه.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

From page to page in an enticing way, Jason Chin takes us all on a journey to help everyone understand our place in the universe. He makes it an easy journey, starting with those four kids on the cover, "about five times as tall as this book, but only half as tall as . . ."
When turning the page, it's an ostrich! Page by page, comparisons happen in the most interesting ways with small tidbits of information like explaining an inch, a foot, and a mile. This journey is long, all the way through the tallest mountain, Mt. Everest, to a trip to the moon, our Milky Way Galaxy, far far away! It's both beautiful and a TREMENDOUS learning trip with Jason's illuminating illustrations aiding the comparisons. For example, on one double-page spread, there are trees side by side, ending with the tallest, a redwood tree. But even taller, on the right, are four well-known buildings, from the Eiffel Tower to the "coming' Jeddah Tower. Mount Everest tops them all, however, then we fly into space! There's good information added at the back plus notes from the author/illustrator and added resources. This would be a special book for all kinds of studies of comparisons and of the universe.

[Emily N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jason Chin has done it again with this whimsical yet informational children's book. "Your Place in the Universe" is about four children, all of different gender identities and races, who are looking out of a telescope one night. As they are looking, Chin walks through the average size of an 8 year old and compares it to an ostrich and then compares the ostrich to a giraffe and a giraffe to a Redwood tree, and so on and so forth, reaching into our galaxy and ending with our universe and how we do not yet know how big space actually is. One unique thing about Chin is he draws everything to scale, so the pictures in the book are actually scaled to what they are in real life, making this book even more of an accurate representation of our universe. The illustrations are darker in color as the story takes place at night. In the back-matter of the book, Chin has even more information on the stars, constellations, and galaxies, which I think is great for a student who is interested in Space. He also includes labels and notes on the pages of the book talking about the units things are measured in and how big the actual object is in real life. Finally, he ends the book with saying how we are all important in our Universe, sending the message to children the importance of loving themselves, loving others, and loving our planet as we are the only known planet to have life on it. I would highly recommend this book to a classroom as it might reach a student who might not love reading but loves science and space or a student who loves literacy but not science, as this book is a way to introduce them to how fascinating science can be. It is crucial that we as educator have books in our classroom that represent the interests of all children.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jason Chin tackles a pretty challenging topic here. Trying to show children their size relative to something as massive as the universe or even a galaxy. The pictures do a great job of accomplishing this task. Kids that enjoy learning about space will also have a lot of facts to digest, and those that enjoy numbers will like learning about their own size relative to massive things on earth and then the sizes of those large things like Mt. Everest, compared to distances in space. Thanks to Edelweiss+ and Holiday House for allowing me to read and review this title that comes out on September 1.

[Abby Johnson]

Ever feel small? Read this book and you will definitely start to feel just how big our galaxy is and how small we are in it. From the average height of an 8-year-old, which is a lot smaller than an ostrich, which is a lot smaller than a giraffe... and so on from skyscrapers to mountains to our very galaxy. This is a beautiful picture book that gives you the big picture about our universe.

[Earl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely stunning! Jason Chin scores yet one again with his latest nonfiction picture book as he tackles the scale and scope of things from kids on Earth to the furthest distance we can observe light years away. The mind-boggling concepts of space and time just shows how much wonder there is out there if we just take the time to look.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fact that we can even OBSERVE 13 billion light years away is kinda mind-blowing. That what we can see only represents what we CAN SEE and not necessarily all there is mind shattering. I always love me some Jason Chin! This one's another winner!

[DaNae · Rating 4 out of 5]

The vastness of space in twelve easy steps. (I really don't know how many steps Chin used). I love books like this and adding one of our most clever illustrator-writers into the mix makes this an essential purchase.

[Kireja · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has an interesting collection of facts about space and is great for kids.
Read for Between The Lines (Summer Edition) reading challenge with co-workers.

[Aneesa]

Things I did not know

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looking at relative size, Chin begins this exploration of how small we actually are in the universe by bringing in 8-year-olds, ostriches and giraffes. Those are soon dwarfed with the tallest trees on Earth, then the tallest buildings. Soon though the mountains fill the page. Chin then takes the reader into space to first view the entire planet and then orbits. Move out to the galaxy level and look at the Milky Way. Then how far away is the Andromeda galaxy or galaxy clusters! Pull out even farther and you can see the cosmic web, chains of galaxies and millions of light-years long. Chin then takes us right back to green grass, 8-year-olds and a starry night.

Chin grips readers’ attentions right away as he quickly moves through what are tall animals and then on to other tall things on earth. Using layered narrative with additional facts along margins and embedded in the images, Chin offers plenty of information in this nonfiction picture book. One the book enters space, Chin manages to keep perspective for everyone, using measurements for comparisons and touchpoints that let us see where we small humans on Earth actually are.

Throughout the book, he makes breathtaking visual comparisons. Just seeing Mount Everest compared to the tallest buildings in the world is remarkable. The space section of the book is filled with stars, spirals of galaxies and the observable universe. These are difficult concepts, but Chin’s art allows readers to begin to think about them, stretching their minds.

A marvel of a nonfiction book, it invites us to understand our size in the universe but also how amazing the universe actually is. Appropriate for ages 5-9.

[Ben Truong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Your Place in the Universe is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Jason Chin. It is an invitation to take a mind-expanding journey from the surface of our planet to the furthest reaches of the observable cosmos.

Chin's text is rather simplistic, straightforward, and informative. It is an exploration of comparative scale from a tiny book to the observable universe. Brief asides offer crystalline explanations of supplemental information, including units of measurement from inches to light-years and one's place in an enormous universe. Backmatter includes an afterword, websites, and further reading. Chin's realistic watercolor and gouache illustrations render awestruck children and cosmic shimmer with inimitable skill, and a magnificent spread comparing Mount Everest’s mass to that of human-built structures.

The premise of the book is rather straightforward. It is a dizzyingly powerful exploration of comparative scale. Page-turn cliffhangers build a pleasing buzz of suspense as Chin adroitly guides readers from books to children to ostriches to redwood trees, past skyscrapers and Mount Everest, through Earth’s layered atmosphere to the moon, and beyond the solar system to the edges of the observable universe.

All in all, Your Place in the Universe is a stimulating outing to the furthest reaches of our knowledge, certain to inspire deep thoughts.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A picture book by Jason Chin that discusses exploration of the smallest measurements on Earth and then compare them to the great distances of solar system to all of the galaxies in the known universe. Presented in minimal text, though it gradually gets into more details in the second half, of measurements in distance between the planets and of how no matter how small we are to the universe, there is always significance in exploration of our world. I honestly thought this was a measuring book at first instead of a space book. Chin's tone is soft and informative, with his illustrations being able to capture the fantasy elements of real space photographs used for references. The back pages explain the more complex ideas behind this work, which is nice as well.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jason Chin can be counted on to create beautiful, informative picture books that will both fascinate and inspire. Your Place in the Universe begins with comparing the size of this book to an eight-year-old child, the child to a giraffe, the giraffe to trees, trees to buildings, and continuing to the Andromeda galaxy and universe. An outstanding book to introduce size and scale but with plenty of in-depth information to appeal to older readers.

[Larson Fairbairn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressively mathematic, scientific and quantitative yet at the same time, a bit witty, fun, and imaginative is my first impression of "Your Place in the Universe". This brilliant book is crafted for the students who really want to picture what they are and where they belong in these complex layers system of space and size. Scale and relativity are complicated concepts especially for young readers and almost anyone when you get to the size of some of the things included in this book like Andromeda galaxy or a cosmic web. These illustrations are some of my favorite that I have ever seen in a children's book, they are drawn and easy to identify as having an artistic quality, but at the same time seem almost life like as they depict almost unimaginable scale differences and extreme detail in the light, colorful tones of the earth and the living things, to the dark, mysterious depth of the space in and beyond our universe as the concepts continue getting more and more cosmologically huge. This is a fun read, filled with stats and facts that can bring some new knowledge to readers of any level of education.

[Natasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. Just wow. This mind-bogglingly excellent picture book compares the size of little 8-year old children to various other living and non-living things on Earth and in space - the tallest living things (the giant redwoods), the tallest man-made structures (the Burj kalifa and soon, the Jeddah Tower), and ultimately, the Universe. The language is simple, the illustrations are stunning, and the overall experience of reading the book with young children is perfect.

[Nathalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would like to give this book 10 stars! It might now be one of my favorite books! Absolutely blew my mind. I kept saying " Whaaaat!?!?" every time we stepped farther and farther away from Earth to the KNOWN universe! We don't even have the capability as yet to see further! I've known this before but Jason Chin's beautifully illustrated book really opened up my mind and imagination! This is a 2023 Beehive Award Nominee in the informational category and it deserves to win!

[Jody Kyburz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh man, I LOVE Jason Chin's work! He is a talented illustrator and author. I grew a bit tired of the size comparisons...eight year olds are about five times as tall as the book, an ostrich is less than half as tall as a giraffe...I teach some eight year olds and I think they would feel a little lost with all those measurements.

There is a TON of back matter in this book which is good...lots of diagrams too. The universe is a big topic! I learned new things.

[Jennifer Noonan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jason Chin has done it again. This book is absolutely brilliant in its scope and accessibility for young readers. And I, as a 50-year-old, learned something new. A wonderful way to put our humanity in perspective, and to give kids a sense of size, distance, and space — both as a concept and as a place where we exist. Fantastic purchase for home libraries, and a wonderful choice for a gift.

[Nan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great way of giving kids a sense of scale of the universe. Kids who’ve gotten excited about astronauts and Space X and Mars rover, etc should like this. Lots of great extra details and the book can be tipped to see scale in another way. Artwork is also gorgeous-deep and dark blues. Same author/artist wrote Grand Canyon- non fiction with tons of details.

[Nadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning children's book introducing kids to space and their size relative to animals, trees, buildings, Earth, all the way to the universe. Full of scientific facts made easy to understand for kids and gorgeous illustrations, this book is a must in a child's library and even an adult can learn something new from reading this book (I sure did!).

[Bridgitte Rodguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cleverly written with comparisons to things and objects understand. It starts small and goes all the way through to the universe. Facts and further explanation are on each page, but isn’t distracting from the main text. Let’s kids understand they are one piece of not only a much larger world but of the universe as a whole.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chin takes readers from an eight-year old's height to the entire universe. He weaves facts with the fun of imagining what taller thing is coming next. The realistic illustrations offer visual connections to the information being shared.

[Kirsti · Rating 5 out of 5]

At last, I know my place in the universe! And all I had to do was read a children's book! This is a delightful account of human scale, planetary scale, and universal scale. It gave me a lot to think about.

[Raghu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awe-inspiring placement of us in the cosmic vastness of space. A masterclass on scale, taking us step-by-step from the size of this book to the dimensions of the observable universe with beautiful (jaw-dropping) illustrations -- such as the one showing our solar system swirling around Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of the milky way.

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wow. There is so much to love in this book -- the math, the compare/contrast, the way the book circles back to right here/right now.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned something too!

[Wendy Gardiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous, informative book. The structure is really fascinating--starting with children and relative size and expanding to the observable universe. Captions add interesting detail and rich backmatter lets you dive even deeper. Author/illustrator notes add even more dimension to the book.