This is a nice bedtime story about a girl and her dream to go to space. Dreaming of space is not enough for esther so she decides it’s time to make it happen!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to love this book because it was such a cute idea and Esther was beyond adorable. But it just seemed to fall short of what it was trying to tell.

Very cute little story to read to the little one before bed. Loved it so much, he wanted me to read it over and over again. One of the most reached for books in our little collection.

The illustrations are fantastic throughout the book and a girl who dreams about wanting to go to outer space and loves everything about space is a great premise. However, I felt that the vocabulary may be too challenging for the age group that the book is intended for.

I would still recommend it for the beautiful illustrations and the notion being presented.

Overall I like this story, I just think it’s a bit long. Ester loves Space. She talks about it, reads about it, and plays space. The story is nice, it’s just really wordy. It needs better editing.

Every night, Esther dreams about space. She desperately wants to build her own space ship and go to space. This book has a great premise, but was difficult to follow. The illustrations were beautiful, but I didn't find the book to be realistic, and for a book that focuses on STEM, was difficult to believe.

It's a female lead, it's STEM, and all about space. Sounds great right? And while the illustrations are whimsical and funny the text itself makes very little sense.

Let's start with the first thing that stuck out to me: power tools. What parent just lets their child have power tools in their bedroom (in this case an electric drill) on their own? While the oversight of the parents is shown a couple of times, where they 'help' her out; overall it feels a little too unrealistic that a child is building this giant rocket, sewing their own spacesuit, etc.

Secondly, does this girl know nothing about space? We live in the Milky Way (so she's already 'visiting' it). There are no known humanoid aliens on Mars. How does one 'discover constellations'? They are ancient interpretations of the stars in the sky as seen from certain areas of the world. Do you see what I'm getting at here? One mistake like this I'd accept, but multiples? Sorry that doesn't work for me.

Overall, Come Back to Earth, Esther! has the right intent but misses on too many levels for me. I feel like I'd be too busy explaining to a child what is incorrect in the book; than actually reading it to them. The opportunity for a child to think they can build their own spaceship (regardless of what it's made out of) in their bedroom is just a little bit too concerning for me to endorse. Books likes this should be about imagination (which is mentioned here too) and about learning facts about space. I also didn't like the comment that she can daydream and focus at the same time. It would have been nice to throw in a nod to how much work and education is required to become an astronaut.
Which leads me to my last thought: isn't it odd to have a book about a girl going to space and never use the word astronaut?

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

This book is great fun, and you can't help but like Esther. I mean, not only is she super into space, she also likes David Bowie, and I covet her rocket ship nightlight! She dreams big, and decides to invent a vehicle to take her to outer space, with a compartment for her dog, Paulette, of course. Her creativity is inspiring, and I think kids will love her story. The artwork- good heavens! I loved the illustrations, so fun and full of all kinds of delightful detail, I really enjoyed looking at each picture finding insights into Esther's character. Absolutely recommended!

#ComeBacktoEarthEsther #NetGalley

STEM is a really big thing with kids and program-planning these days and this book is perfect! I love the fact that Esther is African American and that kids who come to my library can see themselves in books and know that you can be anything when you grow up if you set your mind on it.
Esther is obsessed with the sky and the solar system and has a vivid imagination.
The illustrations in this book are wonderfully done and very vibrant colors, making the reader feel like they're in space and daydreaming with Esther.

Lovely children's book with gorgeous, vibrant illustrations! Esther is an imaginative girl that is obsessed with space. Through her creativity and industry, she builds a rocket and travels to space. This would be a great book for a child interested in space for children in preschool and kindergarten.

Thank you to NetGalley and Nimbus Publishing for providing this ARC.

Sweet story about a little girl that longs for a space adventure. The illustrations are delightful and engaging.

I thought the art in this book was really cute, but I wasn't a big fan of the story. The vocabulary seemed a little advanced for the age range that usually reads picture books and the story ended a little too abruptly for me.

Esther is a young girl who daydreams about space, dreams of sailing through the sky and imagines meeting extra terrestrials. Her days and nights are spent with her "head in the clouds"!
Her determination, passion and imagination for all things space allow her to design and build a rocket and spacesuit. She climbs aboard and 3 2 1...Blast Off! With a little help from her family, she has reached her dreams!

An extraordinary book about a young girl following her dreams, using her imagination and allowing her determination to be who she wants to be!

Loved this and feel it would make a brilliant addition to any home or school library. Diverse, imaginative and celebrating girls in STEM- what more do we want!

Vibrant language!
Exciting and Colourful illustrations with brilliant attention to details!
Power of imagination, determination and dreams!

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a charming book about a little girls who is fascinated with space and wonders what its really like up there and longs to explore space and all the planet's.
This book is great for children with an interest in STEM and space.
I particularly enjoyed how Esther makes her meals look like space!
I really enjoyed this book and think young children will be fascinated with the artwork displayed throughout it.

A lovely and powerful STEM story with a female lead.

The vocabulary is ambitious for the age this should be for. That's great but may make the story tricky to use in schools.

Build up was big but not a lot of of follow through.

Come Back to Earth Esther! is very cute and enjoyable all the way through. My kids really loved the detailed illustrations

A nice story about imagination, but I feel like I just read this book somewhere else. It is similar to a few that have already been released in the past year.

This is a beautiful book about Esther, a girl who loves space. She dreams about it in school, she thinks about it during meals, and finally she builds her own rocket ship. The book encourages kids to dream big dreams while also researching and building/crafting. The artwork is stunning and the story is lovely. I am definitely adding this to my "to buy" list.

There's a lot to love about this charming picture book but there are some major issues for me, too.

The art is gorgeous and fun. Esther is likeable. There's a whimsy to the story, with a child who makes her dinner look like elements of space and decides to make a spacecraft to launch her into it.

But.... the kid is supposedly obsessed with space but wonders if there are kids on Mars? Again and again, the book shows a girl with no true knowledge of space and the book itself defies logic for any true space-loving kid who reads it. She supposedly launches herself into space in this contraption built of spare parts. Even small kids who aren't well versed in space matters are going to see all the problems in this book. Shrug. It just seems a bit off. You need a major suspension of disbelief, and it's likely to be a bigger hit with kids who don't know much about space and won't poke holes in the whole thing.

That said, it's colorful and fun, and will likely be well enjoyed by many young readers.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

This was a beautiful book about a girl who is fascinated by space. She lives in her imagination and is always dreaming about the stars, planets and rockets. She decides to make a space rocket and travel into space. I read this with my seven year old. We enjoyed reading this lovely tale and especially the absolutely stunning illustrations. It was sweet, thought provoking and heart warming.