Author: Eleanor Coerr
Artist: Carolyn Croll
Genre: Balloons / Adventure / Family / Children's
Year Published: 1981
Year Read: 2019
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Series: I Can Read Books
Source: Purchased
Content Rating: Ages 4+ (Some Complex Terms)
Buy on: Amazon // Book Depository
When I was little, my parents used to buy me and my
sisters a couple of books from the “I
Can Read” book series. We have quite
a lot of books from this series and one of the books that we had owned for a
long time was “The Big Balloon Race”
by Eleanor Coerr along with artwork
by Carolyn Croll. This is definitely a book you should read if
you are a huge fan of aeronauts!
The story starts off with Ariel begging her mother
Carlotta the Great to go into the balloon race with her. But Carlotta the Great thinks that Ariel is
too young to be in the race and tells Ariel that as soon as they get to the
race, she should stay in the Odds and Ends box until it was time for the race
to begin. When the Myers family finally
made it to the balloon race, there was a huge celebration for the competing
balloonists, which was between Bernard the Brave and Carlotta the Great herself. Ariel then slept in the Odds and Ends box
until the mayor’s speech was over. But Ariel
accidentally overslept and Carlotta the Great ended up going into her balloon
and taking off with Ariel inside the basket.
When Ariel finally woke up, she noticed that she was now in the air with
her mother and now she has to help her mother win the race against Bernard the
Brave!
Wow! I was
quite impressed with this book! Eleanor Coerr did a fantastic job at
writing this book as the book is full of excitement and wonder as we get to see
how the balloon races were set up during the 1880s! I enjoyed seeing the excitement that the protagonists
have for the balloon race and I loved the fact that they gave it their all in
competing in the races. I especially
loved the way that Eleanor Coerr wrote
both Carlotta the Great and Ariel as they were the most intriguing characters
in the book. I loved the fact that
Carlotta the Great was a strong female protagonist who kept her cool throughout
the entire race and even tried to protect Ariel throughout the race. I also loved the fact that Ariel was so
determined to be in the race and when she finally got into the race, she may
have panicked at some moments, but she eventually got herself together when the
situation got tough. Carolyn Croll’s artwork is adorable and
creative to look at as all the characters have nice rounded faces and I enjoyed
seeing all of the different types of balloons that were used in the race.
Overall, “The
Big Balloon Race” is a truly joyous read for anyone who loves reading books
about balloon races and want to know what aeronauts are. I would recommend this book to children ages
four and up since some small children might not understand what the term “aeronaut”
means, unless it was explained to them by a parent or a teacher.
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