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A Voyage in the Clouds
The (Mostly) True Story of the First International Flight by Balloon in 1785
Matthew Olshan(0)
About
In the year and a half since the flight of the first manned balloon in 1783, an Italian has flown, a Scot has flown, a woman has flown, even a sheep has flown. But no one has flown from one country to another. John Jeffries, an Englishman, and his pilot, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a Frenchman, want to be the first. On January 7, 1785, they set out to cross the English Channel to France in a balloon. All seemed to be going fine, until Jeffries decided the balloon looks too fat and adjusts the air valve-how hard could it be? Too bad he drops the wrench over the side of the aerial car. With no way to adjust the valve, the balloon begins to sink. Jeffries and Blanchard throw as much as they can overboard-until there is nothing left, not even their clothes. Luckily, they come up with a clever (and surprising) solution that saves the day. “A Voyage in the Clouds” from Matthew Olshan and Sophie Blackall is a journey that will keep kids laughing the whole way.
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Reviews
"The illustrations vary from traditional to graphic novel-style at points, using panels and dialogue balloons. Olshan establishes suspense as the two encounter problems and danger during their voyage, and children will want to keep reading and learning more about this historic trip. An author's note discusses the true details incorporated in the story and explains the creative license taken....A d
School Library Journal, starred review
"The baroque ornamentation and carefully lettered speech balloons of Blackall's spreads recall the work of George Cruikshank; like him, she has a gift for revealing that people dressed in petticoats and tricorne hats are just as human as the rest of us. With humor that's never snarky, Olshan reminds readers that, sometimes, the challenge adventurers must overcome is not the elements; it's their ow
Publishers Weekly, starred review