Written by Ashlee Vance
This is the “Young Reader’s Edition” of Ashlee Vance’s biography Elon Musk: Inventing the Future. It gives a window into the ideas and character of this peculiar and visionary entrepreneur who is setting out to change the world (and solar system) in major ways, and just might do it. This being a young reader’s edition I especially appreciated the information about his childhood and formative years, his intense visual imagination, his early fascination with science fiction, and his precocious computer programming. Some young readers will certainly be able to see themselves in Musk and find an example of a successful way forward in life. It covers his intensity and persistence, his challenges and ultimate successes with SpaceX and Tesla, and ends with his dead-serious plans for the colonization of Mars. At 280 pages with few pictures (the comic-styled cover is slightly misleading) this is still not for every young reader, but I would recommend it to young people who are interested in STEM fields, entrepreneurship, space exploration, and the real-life science-nonfiction happening right now in technology companies such as those run by Musk.
Review by Joshua Whiting, Educational Technology Media Center
Rating: ★★★½✩ (3.5 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 5+
Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future
Written by Ashlee Vance
Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
280 pages
Release Date: January 24, 2017
