Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future
Ashlee Vance
Harper Collins
January 2017
You may know Elon Musk as the boundary-pushing leader of tech companies SpaceX and Tesla, but how did he get there? The young reader’s edition of Ashlee Vance’s biography of Musk takes middle grade readers from his childhood in South Africa to his immigration to Canada and later the U.S. to his success as an Internet millionaire to his quest to save humanity through technology. In a world where adults are increasingly concerned about children’s ability to take risks and tolerate failure, there’s no better role model than Musk. His companies and his personal life have swung from the brink of ruin and nearly miraculous accomplishment, but even in the lowest points, he remained undeterred from his lofty goals. The advances his teams of engineers make for inspiring STEM-related reading. Beware the first chapter, which focuses on a dinner the author had with Musk, an episode that may have held some interest in the adult version of the book but that makes a dull opening for kids. Please push through – or even just skip – the first chapter and be rewarded with a story that is sure to inspire.
BookCurious 