"We choose to go to the moon in this decade . . . not because [it is] easy, but because [it is] hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win." President John F. Kennedy, 1962 We want to help children feel inspired and captivated by great books. Some of our own favorites focus on space, rockets, and big dreams, so we thought it would be great to compile a list of the best children's books about space. To quote a favorite animated character, Buzz Lightyear from Disney's Toy Story, we want children to believe they can go "to infinity, and beyond!" Sometimes the best way to voyage into new worlds is by being transported into the vast unknown of space through the pages of an amazing book. In 2011, NASA shut down its space shuttle program, a program that sparked amazing feats of science, math, and engineering and human ingenuity, bravery, and creativity. It seems that despite thrilling achievements in the years after President John F. Kennedy declared "we choose to go to the moon," space exploration lost its perceived value and was seen as a high-risk, low-return government expense. Matthew McConaughey's character, the space shuttle pilot Cooper, might have captured the feeling best: "We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars, now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt." Interestingly, private companies have stepped into to fill the empty space (wink, wink) left by NASA, and people all over the world are enthralled with the potential of colorful visionaries like Richard Branson and Virgin Galactic, Elon Musk and SpaceX, and Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin. We're enjoying a resurgence of interest in space and exploration, and we hope children, and the parents and other loved ones who enjoy the books with them, can find their next big dream in one of these, the best books about space. Live long and prosper! ;)