Published by Thames & Hudson, 2019.

Pop-up Moon is a fascinating read. It’s a thoroughly engaging book with spectacular pop-ups. It has a broad scope covering lots of interesting topics. It begins with various theories on where the moon came from and how it was made. It then provides descriptions of the conditions on the moon and explains that the lack of wind is the reason why footprints left by Armstrong and Aldrin still remain on the moon’s surface today. There’s a clear explanation of the phases of the moon, supported by a terrific moveable model.

There’s a discussion about various superstitions surrounding the moon and an explanation of how the moon affects the tides on Earth. The book also models the moon’s orbit of Earth and demonstrates why we only ever see the same side of the moon from Earth. We learn about other planets in our solar system which have moons. There are explanations of solar and lunar eclipses and gravity (including the fact that gravity is six times less on the moon than it is on Earth).

There’s a section about the Space Race, the first moon landing and the Apollo missions. There’s also a detailed description of rocket travel with excellent diagrams explaining the different stages: launch, orbit, landing and re-entry. We see how different parts of the rocket are jettisoned at different stages and get an understanding of the various modules that make up a moon rocket.

I really enjoyed Pop-up Moon and think that it’s pitched perfectly for its audience. It’s beautifully illustrated, the paper engineering used to create the pop-ups is very impressive, and there’s loads to interest and impress a young reader.

Rating: 💙💙💙💙💙

Suitable for children aged 8+

Thank you to Thames & Hudson for sending me this book to review.