Comet Chaser: The True Cinderella Story of Caroline Herschel, the First Professional Woman Astronomer

By Pamela S. Turner and Vivien Mildenberger

The real-life Cinderella story of the very first professional woman astronomer—Caroline Herschel!

Comet Chaser is the thrilling and beautifully illustrated biography of a woman who made a lifetime of incredible contributions to science. She was the first woman to discover a comet, the first officially recognized in a scientific role, and the first to be given a Gold Medal by the Royal Astronomical Society.

In a day when girls were barely educated at all, Caroline Herschel's father taught her math and music . . . until, suddenly, he died. Her mother saw her as little more than a household servant. Caroline might have been doomed to a life of drudgery and dimness if not for her brother, who took her from Germany to England. There they started building telescopes in their free time, gradually making them larger and larger, and discovering new comets—even new planets! When the great astronomers of the day wondered how Caroline and her brother accomplished this and came to see for themselves, they found that the Herschels had made the best telescopes of their time.

From household drudge to belle of the scientific ball, Caroline Herschel won international prizes never before awarded to a woman and earned a professional wage from the king. She and her discoveries remain as stunning today as they were then. Some of her calculations are still in use! In this delightfully imaginative retelling of Caroline's career, her fairy godmother is none other than her own bright intelligence, hard work, and passion for science.

WOMEN IN STEM: Passion and persistence save the day and offer a wonderful model for girls seeking their way into science, technology, engineering, and math in this starry biography.

AN EMPOWERING, TRUE CINDERELLA STORY: What a brilliant way of telling the story of an inspirational woman in science—as a true Cinderella story! Caroline must escape a humble life of drudgery, and with the magic of real science, she makes her own fairy-tale ending.

BIOGRAPHY BOOK FOR KIDS: A great addition to classrooms and libraries, with fascinating examples of hands-on engineering, mathematics, and scientific study.

INSPIRATIONAL GIFT: Inspire budding scientists of all kinds with this magical true story!

Perfect for:

• Kids interested in science, space, or astronomy
• Teachers and librarians looking for excellent picture book biographies and nonfiction books about science
• Gift givers hoping to inspire a love of STEM topics
• Fans of Hidden Figures, The Fire of Stars, and Ada Twist, Scientist

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chronicle Books Digital
• Release date: Mar 5, 2024
• ISBN: 9781452175379

Pamela S. Turner

Pamela S. Turner has a master’s degree in public health from the University of California, Berkeley, and a special interest in microbiology and epidemiology. Her articles for children and adults have appeared in numerous scientific publications. Her books include Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog, Gorilla Doctors, The Frog Scientist, Dolphins of Shark Bay, and Project Seahorse. She lives in California. www.pamelasturner.com

Book preview

Cover: Comet Chaser by Pamela S. Turner

To Carter —PST

Text copyright © 2024 by Pamela S. Turner.

Illustrations copyright © 2024 by Vivien Mildenberger.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available.

ISBN 978-1-4521-4543-3 (hc),

978-1-4521-7537-9 (epub reflowable),

978-1-4521-7539-3 (epub fixed-format),

978-1-4521-7538-6 (Kindle)

Design by Ryan Hayes.

Typeset in Galaxie Copernicus.

The illustrations in this book were rendered in paint.

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On that dazzling winter night, the cold of deep space seemed to reach to the cobblestone streets of Hannover, Germany. Caroline Herschel gripped her father’s hand