A Voyage in the Clouds

Title: A Voyage in the Clouds
Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Matthew Olshan
Major Awards: None
Age Group: 2nd-5th grade

This is the story of Dr. John Jeffries and Jean-Pierre Blanchard and their flight from one country to another. An Italian had flown, a Scot had flown, a woman had flown, and a sheep had even flown in a "manned balloon", but no one had ever flown from one country to another. Dr. Jeffries and pilot, Monsieur Blanchard wanted to be the first ones to do this. They cannot stand each other, though which causes issues. Blanchard does not want Dr. Jeffries to fly with him, so he makes up a theory that the balloon can only hold one person and a dog. Dr. Jeffries knew this was not true because he had already weighed everything to know that it could hold the two of them and their supplies. Dr. Jeffries weighs everything again, and sure enough, it all fits. They take flight and everything goes smoothly until they start to descend. Thinking it could be their weight after all, they start throwing away their provisions and then the balloon starts to rise again. In the end, they reach France and their balloon pops, but they make it to safety just in time.

I would like this book in my classroom because it teaches the story of the first international flight by balloon, but in a way young students can understand. There is a lot of humor in the book and it tells the story in a light-hearted manner. It is a more lengthy story, so I think that the younger students would benefit more from it being read aloud to them. The pictures also really help the reader gain a better understanding of the book. 

I think this would best suit second through fifth grade students. Like I stated above, second and third grade students might better understand the book if it was read aloud to them because it is a bit lengthy and uses some big words. I think that all of these students would learn a lot from this story, though and would find it humorous! 

In my classroom, I could have my students design their own balloon and then write a description of who they would take with them in their balloon, and where they would fly to. We also could discuss the courage these two men showed to take flight in this balloon, not knowing how the trip would play out. I could also have them write about what they would have done if they were in the balloon that Dr. Jeffries and Blanchard were in when it started descending. What are some things they could have tried to stop the balloon from dropping?