Reviews for Meteor!

The average rating for Meteor! based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2009-12-19 00:00:00 Karin Irvine This is Patricia Polacco's very first book for children, published in 1987, and, thankfully, she's still writing children's picture books. I noticed that this was her first book only when I read the back inside cover author's bio area. She writes this as straight non-fiction but I kind of wonder if some liberties were taken, so I've shelved this as both non-fiction and fiction. It's the story of a meteor that fell into her grandparents' yard while she was visiting them, and the effect the meteor had on her family and their neighbors. I loved the illustrations. My favorite one was probably the one on the title page; it's beautiful. The story is okay, fairly interesting, and at times funny. My favorite part was the two pages that show the residents of their area on the telephone with each other, all informing each other about the falling meteorite. It's a la "the telephone game" where each telling gets less accurate, and in this case more fantastic as the phone conversations progress. I also like the way she took advantage of the term meteor in the story. I was touched by the final resting place of the famous meteorite.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-02-09 00:00:00 Michael Cusimano Prolific children's artist and author Patricia Polacco, whose fifty-fifth picture-book is due for release this coming April, made her debut with Meteor!, which, like so many of her subsequent books, is based upon a tale from her own childhood. The story of a meteorite that lands near her Gramma and Grampa Gaw's Michigan farmhouse, creating a hubbub the likes of which Union City has never seen, it chronicles the growing excitement - the rumors flying, the impromptu carnival breaking out at the Gaw farm, with bands playing, a circus performing, and friends meeting for the first time in months - and sense of magic created by this celestial object falling to earth. I was really quite charmed by this first picture-book from Polacco, particularly as I could pick out any number of themes - the use of a true story from her family's history, the chaotic feeling of fun and community - that would go on to become hallmarks of her work. The artwork has that trademark sense of vitality and motion - I'm always impressed by how well the illustrations work in Polacco's books, even though I don't find them, judged separately from the story, that appealing - and the coterie of animals companions, which I have come to expect, makes an appearance (their first one) here. All in all, an engaging picture-book, one I would recommend particularly to young sky-watchers, and to fans of the author/artist.