The Stars: A New Way to See Them
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The Stars: A New Way to See Them: A great introduction to astronomy for children. It walks through the constellations with phrases like Leo looks like a lion. It's readable and easy to understand.
You probably know about Margret and H. A. Rey’s famous Curious George books, but do you know that H. A. Rey also published an astronomy reference book for kids?
The Stars: A New Way to See Them is a great introduction to astronomy for children. It walks through the constellations with phrases like Leo looks like a lion. It’s readable and easy to understand.
But don’t assume it’s light on details. Not a bit! This reference book has 100+ pages packed with information. It’s filled with illustrations of the constellations, our solar system, and the universe. You could easily use it as a spine for an astronomy study or as a reference throughout the year when questions come up.
Recommended Age: 5+
Leslie Says:
You can find older versions at used bookstores or antique shops, but we recommend buying the most recent edition with updated information (like Pluto’s classification)!
About the Author:
Hans Augusto Rey was born in Hamburg, Germany in 1898. As a child, he spent much of his free time in that city’s famous Hagenbeck Zoo drawing animals. After serving in the army during World War I, he studied philology and natural science at the University of Hamburg. He then married Margret Rey and they moved to Montmartre for four years. The manuscript for the first Curious George books was one of the few items the Reys carried with them on their bicycles when they escaped from Paris in 1940. Eventually, they made their way to the United States, and Curious George was published in 1941. Curious George has been published in many languages, including French, German, Japanese, Afrikaans, and Norwegian. Additional Curious George books followed, as well as such other favorites as Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys and Find the Constellations. Read more about him here.
A Few Reviews:
“The Stars: A New Way to See Them is the best book available for its purpose. It is also a brilliant example of the combined use of art and writing in bringing science to the layman.” – Saturday Review
“In 1954, my Dad bought me this book and my first pair of binoculars. I was 8 years old and still have it with me. I read every page and spent many hours on top of our house in Denver winter and summer to develop my interest in Astronomy. Everyone thought I was crazy including my Dad and brothers. I got my first of several telescopes 2 years later and started to take my first crude pictures. I joined the Denver Astronomical Society and learned how to grind reflecting telescope mirrors. I was the first to earn the Astronomy merit badge in scouts in Denver in over 20 years. I graduated from the University of Arizona with a B.S. in Astronomy in 1968. The war took me in another direction with an IT career for the next 40 years, but my love was always with the stars and Astronomy thanks to this H. A. Rey book in the 50s. I have traveled many miles to witness many astronomical events including 2 total solar eclipses in Yakima, Washington in 1979 and last year’s 2017 event in Baker City, Oregon with my special cameras. I have hosted star gazing parties for kids and adults and I always recommend this book. I now have a chance to use it all over again with my wife, family, and friends on super clear nights from our mountain cabin as an old retired guy on our deck. No more rooftops! Just downloaded this digital version to my HD 10. Just as good as my older first paper edition. My only wish was that they had retained the 4 quadrant charts for each of the 12 month/time table charts for separate views looking due north, south, east, and west instead of the singular circular charts which don’t work too well on Kindles with auto-rotate. Oh well, at least now I don’t need a flashlight to read charts while observing. If you only only have a slight interest in the stars or Astronomy, get this book for $10. You never know, or maybe give it to a crazy kid, son, or daughter who likes watching the stars and all of nature’s amazing events not on flat screens. Have fun!” – Amazon Reviewer R.K. Greene
“The best introductory guide to the stars and constellations, bar none! It has numerous features which makes learning the constellations much easier and more fun. Here are a few examples:
(1) H.A. Rey has done a great service by redrawing the constellations (using the same stars) so that they *actually* look like the figure they represent. This is in contrast to so many other constellation drawings (by others) that bear no resemblance at all to the figure they supposedly represent. They come in two varieties: either they are lifelike representations with no correlation at all between the figure and the individual stars or they are stick figures that look more like abstract art!
(2) Rather than deluging you with lots of irrelevant facts, H.A. Rey has chosen some very pertinent, interesting facts and anecdotes to share about the stars and the constellations. These are the kind of facts that are fun to share with others when you introduce them to the constellations!
(3) H.A. Rey has very wisely left the more detailed and technical explanations for discussion later in the book. He starts off by telling you just the basics that you need to start stargazing right away!
(4) On the Calendar Chart pages you will see two star charts on facing pages. On the left you’ll see just the stars and on the right you’ll see the stars with the connecting lines to show the constellations. Going back and forth between the pages is a great way to start to memorize the celestial patterns so that when you get outside it will be easier to pick them out!” – Amazon Reviewer David Simoni
