Earthrise: The Story of the Photograph That Changed the Way We See Our Planet

From award-winning historian Leonard S. Marcus, Earthrise is a unique middle-grade nonfiction book about the astonishing photograph taken during the Apollo 8 mission that forever shifted the way we view ourselves and our planet.

Gazing out the window of the Apollo 8 spacecraft on Christmas Eve, 1968, NASA astronaut Bill Anders grabbed his camera and snapped the iconic color photo of our planet rising over the lunar horizon. Not long after the crew’s safe return, NASA developed Anders’s film and released “Earthrise” to the world. It soon became one of the most viewed and consequential photographs in all of human history, inspiring the first Earth Day in 1970 and boosting the global environmental movement. In the decades since, this incredible photograph of our small yet beautiful, familiar yet strange, “blue marble” has moved billions to rethink their understanding of our home planet, and even their very idea of “home.”

A companion to Marcus’s acclaimed Mr. Lincoln Sits for His Portrait—a unique biography of America’s sixteenth president centered around one famous 1864 photo—Earthrise uses the same technique of exploring a key moment in US history through the lens of an iconic photograph. This rocket-paced, compact, and highly accessible nonfiction book includes a trove of black-and-white images and related materials throughout.

This is perfect for elementary and middle school kids ages 10-14, or in grades 5 through 8, who love:
● Outer space, astronauts, and STEM-related books
● Fascinating dives into American history
● Quick and engaging nonfiction reads