Category: Children’s Books
Reviewed by: Casey Suire
Title: Astronaut Hayley’s Brave Adventure
Author: Hayley Arceneaux
Illustrator: Lucie Bee
Ages: 3-7 years
Format: Hardcover/Kindle
Pages: 40
Publisher: Convergent Books
Date: February 2025
Retail price: $13.99/$7.99
ISBN: 978-0593443903
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What has Hayley Arceneaux, the St. Jude’s physician assistant turned private astronaut, been up to since her space flight on Inspiration4? Among other things, she is a published author of not one, but three books. The first, Wild Ride, described how she overcame childhood cancer and became a member of the first all-civilian spaceflight. A young reader’s adaptation of Wild Ride was also published.
Hayley Arceneaux’s third book is a children’s story titled Astronaut Hayley’s Brave Adventure. With this publication, she joins a growing list of astronauts that have written a children’s book.
Kids will have a variety of interesting responses: “That cover is very pretty.” “How old do you have to be to go to space?” “That girl’s hair is so frizzy in space.” “Can they see my house up there?” Of course, they will ask how astronauts use the bathroom in space.
Rather than rehash the Inspiration4 mission to little kids, this new adventure takes Hayley and her two crewmates on a fictitious spaceflight. One major difference is Hayley’s age, as she is a child in the story. Otherwise, there are several similarities with Hayley’s previous mission. For example, she still flies to orbit in a Crew Dragon spacecraft and her call sign is once again “Nova.” During astronaut training in the story, she climbs a mountain. This is reminiscent of how the Inspiration4 crew climbed Mount Rainier during their own training.
Furthermore, Hayley and the other astronauts still dine on pizza inside their spaceship. A zero-g indicator, a plush toy that visually demonstrates that the crew is in space, floats inside their capsule. This time, it is a three-eyed toy alien instead of the spacesuit-clad St. Jude’s therapy dog from Inspiration4. Her family, which she discussed in great detail in Wild Ride, is back in this current book. Young Hayley talks space with her brother, who currently works in the space industry.
The book mentions Hayley’s cancer diagnosis early in her life, which resulted in a titanium rod in one of her legs. Media coverage of Inspiration4 described Hayley as the first astronaut with a prosthesis. This is not exactly true. Weeks after Inspiration4 returned to Earth, a NASA official revealed at the Spaceflight for Everybody virtual symposium that a few astronauts had flown with hip and bone prosthetics. Not wanting to take attention from Inspiration4, this information was not disclosed until after the flight concluded. Rather, Hayley Arceneaux is the first private astronaut with a prosthesis. Regardless, other space groups have taken notice. In 2022, the European Space Agency (ESA) selected John McFall, who has an amputated leg and subsequently became a track and field athlete, as the first “parastronaut.” At the time of this writing, he hasn’t been assigned to a spaceflight yet.
For parents and educators, this is a nice book to read to small children, whether they’re obsessed with space or just need to hear a good story. Perhaps it can even be read from space. There is a project called Story Time from Space where astronauts aboard the International Space Station read space-inspired children’s books. The group’s YouTube channel has dozens of such storytimes. Given the uniqueness of Hayley’s journey to space, this book would be a good recommendation for this program.
Astronaut Hayley’s Brave Adventure has all one can ask for in a children’s space book: the exploits of an actual astronaut, beautiful space art, and useful life lessons. In the story, as in real life, Hayley excels at battling adversity. Her dedication for the book appropriately reads, “For all the brave kids.” It takes a lot of strength to stay positive during challenging times. Young astrogirl Hayley Arceneaux will show children, and possibly some adults, how not only to keep going but how to succeed as well.
© 2025 Casey Suire
