George's Secret Key to the Universe

Authors: Lucy and Stephen Hawking with Christophe Galfard

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Publication Year: 2007

Lexile: 1020L (This book is not in the Lexile Book Database. I used the Lexile Analyzer to get this value.)

Most of the readers will be: Advanced elementary and middle school readers who are interested in space.

Reader's Advisory: This book reminds me of Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World, which also uses the novel format to deliver factual information. Sophie's World is for an older audience than George's Secret Key to the Universe, but is not out of reach for a bright middle schooler.

Summary:
When George's pet pig Freddy wanders onto the forbidden lot next door, George meets his new neighbors, Eric and Annie. Eric is a scientist who uses his computer, Cosmos, to travel the universe searching for another planet like Earth. Annie is his daughter. George is in awe of Eric and his computer because his own parents are very distrusting of technology, growing their own food and preferring candles to electricity. Then disaster strikes when George's evil teacher, Dr. Reaper, tricks Eric into falling into a black hole and steals Cosmos. It is up to George and Annie to learn about Eric's recent discoveries about black holes and get Cosmos back to save him.

My favorite passage:

"Now," continued Eric, "the question we all came to answer is a question of fundamental interest for everyone who is involved in science. We all know far too well how it can be used for evil purposes, and that is why we have all taken the Oath of the Scientist, so that science is used only for the good of humanity. But we are now facing a dilemma. As you heard in the news and saw at the environmental march on Saturday, more and more people are concerned about the state of the Earth. So, the question we now have to answer is: Should we concentrate on finding ways to improve life on Earth and face its problems, or should we try to find another planet for humanity to inhabit?"
All the scientists in the room were silent and looked very serious. George watched them as they wrote an answer on a little piece of paper. Eric then collected the papers in a hat. In total, including Eric and the red-haired speaker, eight scientists had voted. Eric then started to open up the papers one by one.
"The Earth."
"The Earth."
"Another planet."
"Another planet."
"Another planet."
"The Earth."
"The Earth."
"Another planet."
"Well, well," said Eric. "It seems we have a split vote."
The red-haired Professor Crzkzak put up her hand. "May I make a suggestion?" she asked. Everyone else nodded. She got to her feet. "George," she said, addressing the boy directly, "we may lack a bit of perspective on this matter, because we are all specialists in our fields. So you could maybe tell us what you think about it."
All the scientists were looking at him now. George felt very shy and stayed silent for a few seconds.
"Say what you really think," whispered Professor Crzkzak.
Twisting his fingers in his lap, George thought about his parents and the green campaigners. He then thought about the excitement of traveling in space and trying to find another home out there. And then he heard himself say to the scientists, "Why can't you do both?" (pg 190-192)

What I really think:
This book can do two great things: It can teach young people about the benefits of scientific research, and it can also teach them that they are not too young to understand difficult scientific concepts. That said, I think Hawking is a little full of himself. The cover of the book proclaims, "Includes the Latest Ideas about Black Holes!" In the book we read that particles actually leak from black holes. These particles are called "Hawking Radiation." I commend the man for sharing this information with children, but perhaps he could be a little more modest about it.