THE GOLDILOCKS ZONE

Goldilocks herself (along with Baby Bear) takes a solar system tour to discover why Earth is just right for life (as we know it).

Astronomers use the term Goldilocks Zone to describe the general distance from any sun that would not be too hot nor cold—and if Sheneman neglects to mention that nearly all stars besides our own have one or, for that matter, the possibility that life could exist on certain moons too, still he makes a good case for cherishing our one certain home. Guided by a disheveled-looking White gent in a lab coat and clad in bubble-helmeted spacesuits, the blond, White young burglar and her ursine counterpart, cracking wise as they go, hop from one inhospitable planet to the next (“If you tried to stand on the surface of Saturn, you’d sink into a toxic soup of gas and ice until the pressure popped you like a grape”). As they travel, they gather important planetary facts (“Wait…ammonia, methane…Neptune is made of fart gas!”) to digest along with still-warm bowls of porridge when they arrive back on Earth. Paired with broader approaches to understanding our place in the universe, like Tom Sullivan’s Out There (2019), this lively excursion will leave audiences stirred by what lies around them as well as what awaits up in the skies. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A cogent and comical reminder to those with stars in their eyes that there are also wonders closer to home.