Maria longs to be an astronomer -- a wish that burns as brightly as a star. But girls in the nineteenth century don't grow up to be scientists, especially those who are needed at home. Each night when her papa sweeps the sky with his telescope, Maria sweeps the floor below, imagining all the strange worlds he can travel to from the rooftop of their Nantucket home.

Then one night Maria finally gets her chance to look through her papa's telescope. For the first time, she beholds the night sky stretching endlessly above her, and her dream of exploring the comets and constellations seems close enough to touch.

Loosely based on the childhood of Maria Mitchell, America's first woman astronomer, and illuminated by Deborah Lanino's star-swept illustrations, here is an exquisitely told story of a girl who yearns for adventure beyond her limited circumstances, and sets out to follow her heart.

A story of a young girl who dreams of being an astronomer just like her father. Beautiful illustrations show the simple life Maria leads and the night sky. ( )

Genre: Historical fiction
Audience: 3-5th grade
Maria's Comet is a historical fiction picture book based on the first woman astronomer Maria Mitchell who lived on Nantucket Island in 1818. This book was based at a time when women and girls were not encouraged to study or work in science. Maria is the oldest daughter of nine children and helps her mother doing household chores. She sweeps the floor, while her father sweeps the sky with the telescope. Once her brother Andrew leaves home she finally gathers the courage to ask her parents if she could look at stars through the telescope and later becomes the first American woman astronomer. This is an interesting book that I would definitely use to describe how life was for women and girls during that time period. ( )