Pages

Friday, October 9, 2009

The Magic School Bus Lost In The Solar System

From Publishers Weekly
Cole and Degen have already escorted young readers on three enlightening, boisterous rides on the magic school bus--in explorations of the human body, waterworks and the inside of the Earth. This latest expedition, on which the energetic Miss Frizzle offers a tour of the planets, should not be missed. When a closed planetarium disappoints her students on a class trip, the likable teacher saves the day. She manages to launch her rickety school bus into space and steers it around the solar system, visiting the moon, the sun, Mercury, Venus and Mars before an asteroid knocks out one of the taillights. When Miss Frizzle leaves the bus to investigate, she gets lost in space, and the students visit the outer planets without her. They reconnect with her eventually, and the group ends up back in the classroom, making a chart and a mobile based on their discoveries. Once again, author and illustrator let readers laugh while they learn in an animated, fact-filled adventure. Ages 6-9.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
The planetarium is closed for repairs, so the Magic School Bus blasts off on a real tour of the solar system. After their previous field trips, the children in Ms. Frizzle's class are all blase about such things; as they land on the Moon, Venus, and Mars, and fly by the other planets and the Sun, they comment on what they see, generate a blizzard of one- or two-sentence reports on special topics and--even while Ms. Frizzle is temporarily left behind in the asteroid belt--crack terrible jokes ("Could Saturn take a bath? Yes, but it might leave a ring!"). Although some of the information is radically simplified--people are said to float in space because "without a large mass nearby . . . they do not have weight"--Cole keeps the narrative specific without burdening it with loads of facts. Degen's fresh, energetic illustrations complement the breathless pace perfectly. A first-class introduction to the planets, fine for pleasure or purpose reading. --John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
On a special field trip in the magic school bus, Ms. Frizzle's class goes into outer space and visits each planet in the solar system.

About the Author
Author Joanna Cole and illustrator Bruce Degen make learning a spirited joyride, delighting young audiences with their fantastic journeys to the eye of a hurricane, the bottom of the ocean, and the center of the earth, to name just a few. Author and illustrator have said they were each inspired by an important teacher in their classroom days - very much like Ms. Frizzle! There are now more than 58 million Magic School Bus books in print, in a variety of formats, plus a wildly successful animated television series. Called "a can’t-miss team" by School Library Journal, Cole and Degen live in Florida and Connecticut, respectively. For more information about Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen, visit: scholastic.com/magicschoolbus/books/authors