The magic school bus : lost in the solar system

"On a special field trip in the magic school bus, Ms. Frizzles class goes into outer space and visits each planet in the solar system"--Publishers description.

Author Notes

Joanna Cole was born in Newark, New Jersey on August 11, 1944. She attended the University of Massachusetts, Indiana University, and City College of New York where she earned a degree in Psychology.

Ms. Cole has worked as an elementary school teacher, a librarian, and a children's book editor. As a child, she loved science and explaining things and this is why she started writing children's books. She writes fiction and non-fiction titles. Her most well-known series are the Magic School Bus and the "Body."

Cole's books have received a number of honors. A Horse's Body and A Snake's Body were both named Outstanding Science Trade Books for children by the joint committee of the National Science Teachers Association and the Children's Book Council. In 1982, A Snake's Body was named a Children's Choice Book by the joint committee of the International Reading Association and the Children's Book Council. Both A Cat's Body and A Bird's Body were Junior Literary Guild selections. In 1991, she was awarded the Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Nonfiction award.

Joanna Cole, who wrote over 250 books for children, died on July 12, 2020 at the age of 75.

030 (Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

The planetarium is closed for repairs, so the Magic School Bus blasts off on a real tour of the solar system. After their previous field trips, the children in Ms. Frizzle's class are all blase about such things; as they land on the Moon, Venus, and Mars, and fly by the other planets and the Sun, they comment on what they see, generate a blizzard of one- or two-sentence reports on special topics and--even while Ms. Frizzle is temporarily left behind in the asteroid belt--crack terrible jokes (``Could Saturn take a bath? Yes, but it might leave a ring!''). Although some of the information is radically simplified--people are said to float in space because ``without a large mass nearby . . . they do not have weight''--Cole keeps the narrative specific without burdening it with loads of facts. Degen's fresh, energetic illustrations complement the breathless pace perfectly. A first-class introduction to the planets, fine for pleasure or purpose reading. --John Peters, New York Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

Cole and Degen have already escorted young readers on three enlightening, boisterous rides on the magic school bus--in explorations of the human body, waterworks and the inside of the Earth. This latest expedition, on which the energetic Miss Frizzle offers a tour of the planets, should not be missed. When a closed planetarium disappoints her students on a class trip, the likable teacher saves the day. She manages to launch her rickety school bus into space and steers it around the solar system, visiting the moon, the sun, Mercury, Venus and Mars before an asteroid knocks out one of the taillights. When Miss Frizzle leaves the bus to investigate, she gets lost in space, and the students visit the outer planets without her. They reconnect with her eventually, and the group ends up back in the classroom, making a chart and a mobile based on their discoveries. Once again, author and illustrator let readers laugh while they learn in an animated, fact-filled adventure. Ages 6-9. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

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Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Publisher's Weekly Review