 Pieces of Another World is the touching story of a father and child's nighttime excursion to watch a meteor shower. The author keeps the readers in suspense by telling the story through the eyes of the child, who has no idea where they are going in the middle of the night - or why. The wonderful, vivid descriptions make the readers feel as though they too, are in the middle of the field watching the tiny bits of other, distant worlds, blazing into our own. The "For Creative Minds" section is loaded with information about meteors (also known as "shooting stars" or "falling stars") and meteor showers. Learn the difference between meteors, meteoroids, meteorites, asteroids and comets
“Pieces of Another World is a heart-warming story that will educate and excite children to watch the sky and encourage parents to observe with their children.”
- National Space Society “The author weaves scientific fact and information into the story with so little effort that readers hardly realize they are learning while reading this endearing story.”
- NSTA Recommends “The colorful illustrations by Salima Alikhan are large, well drawn and detailed. They give the reader a sense of being there looking at the night sky.” - Science Books & Films
Author/Artist Bio:
Mara Rockliff (author) has been a professional writer for children and adults since 1991. Her own favorite meteor shower was one she watched with a group of friends on a bitterly cold night. They threw a pile of old blankets on the ground and huddled close together, telling jokes and singing songs as they stared up into the clear night sky, afraid to blink and miss one of these tiny bits of other, distant worlds as they blazed into our own. She lives in Charlottesville, Virginia with her family. While she has written many beginning readers, textbooks, essays, and magazine articles, Pieces of Another World is her first picture book. About meteor showers, she writes, “I never saw one as a child, but I do remember being woken up once in the middle of the night and taken out for ice cream—a real event!" 
Salima Alikhan (artist) decided to pursue a career in children's book illustration when she realized her lifelong passion for art would never leave her alone. Salima studied at the Corcoran Institute of Art in Washington, DC. Her favorite medium is watercolor. She begins most of her illustrations by drawing on cold-pressed watercolor paper, going over the drawing with ink, painting the picture, and then adding the final detail with watercolor pencil. To create the effect of snow, gravel, sand, stars, or coral, she often sprinkles salt on top of watercolor while it's still wet. When the paint dries, she shakes the salt off. The mineral compositions of different types of salts create different effects. Table salt leaves smaller spots, which are good for snow, gravel and stars; and sea salt or canning salt leave large circles, which are better for coral or sand. She has the good fortune of being an art teacher in a Montessori school, where she has learned lots about both art and children. She currently resides, teaches, and paints in Reston, VA. This is her first children's book. To visit her web site, click here. |
Science and Math through Literature
