Rusch, Elizabeth. The Mighty Mars Rover.

Rusch, Elizabeth.  The Mighty Mars Rover.  Houghton Mifflin/Clarion/Graphia/Kingfisher    80p  $18.99  978-0-547-47881-4  elm/ms      E-BN      

This book provides outstanding color photos and well-written text that focuses on how the 2003 Mars mission was envisioned, engineered and executed.  It should be a sure-fire hit for robotics classes and space exploration reports, especially given the ongoing 2012 Mars mission. It is appropriate for grades 4 and up.  

The point of view is that of Steven Squyres, who has had an interest in science from childhood on through his college years studying geology.  He ultimately was a lead person on the Mars exploration project to determine if there is any water on Mars.  Many instances of teamwork, triumphs and set-backs, and real-life problem solving went into the development of the project and design engineering necessary to create two robots to explore Mars.  The fact that Spirit and Opportunity lasted long after their three-month life expectation is a tribute to the brilliant minds working on the project.  This book demonstrates science and engineering in action, and it may spark an interest in readers in entering those fields.  Photos of the people working on the project as well as transmissions from the rovers bring a sense of immediacy to the text.  

With the current Mars “Curiosity” mission, this book will be in high demand to provide the back story.  Anyone interested in robotics will devour this book in one sitting to find out how scientists were able to program and move the robot through difficult situations.  A mission update, sources, chapter notes, glossary, index and list of references for further reading complete the book. One minor quibble: on page 28 in a photo caption of Scott Maxwell, there appears to be a grammatical mistake: “when I’m about make something happen”.     

This book is strongly recommended wherever robotics are taught or for science classes that study space exploration.  It is an excellent example of science and engineering in action, featuring real-life examples of teamwork and problem solving.                                                       -- Lois McNicol