What is it like to be an astronaut and travel to outer space? In this book, readers follow Captain Toni Omari and his crew as they tour the solar system. The journey begins at Cape Canaveral where lift off is successful and within minutes the spacecraft has left earth’s atmosphere. The first stop is the moon where the surface is totally bare except for craters made by meteorites. Venus is the next stop and the nearest planet to Earth, but its atmosphere is so thick it makes the planet spin more slowly. One day on Venus is equal to 243 days on Earth. Next comes the Sun, but it is so hot the crew cannot get closer than 620,000 miles away. Mercury is next and the planet closest to the sun, followed by Jupiter, which is the biggest planet in the solar system. Pluto is forty times farther from the Sun than Earth, which makes it a very cold planet, so the crew does not stay here very long. No mention of recent scientific assertions that Pluto does not actually “qualify” to be called a planet. Saturn and Mars are the final stops and scientists believe that there might once have been life on Mars. The crew finally ends their journey on a planet unlike any other place in the solar system, Earth. Million of different kinds of plants and animals live on Earth making it the best and perhaps only place in our solar system where life can exist. This book is full of colorful photos and interesting facts that are sure to intrigue young explorers. Also included are a glossary, index, and references for further information. This book is part of the “Crabtree Connections” series and is great for elementary level readers. Reviewer: Heather Kinard