Bonnie’s Rocket

Bonnie’s father is an engineer for the Apollo 11 space mission. Bonnie is an engineer too, developing a rocket ship that she plans to shoot high into the sky. While Baba works on the moon-landing module at the space center in far-off Florida, Bonnie designs, builds, and tests her own rocket - with sometimes disastrous results! Throughout the process, Baba’s letters encourage her in her work, and after the astronauts return from the moon, Baba comes home in time to see Bonnie launch her amazing rocket. Inspired by the experiences of the author’s grandfather, who helped design the space suits and life-support systems for the Apollo 11 mission, Bonnie’s Rocket reminds us of the importance of the contributions of people of color in the United States’s greatest achievements. It’s also a heartwarming father-daughter story, and a terrific gift for budding engineers of all kinds.