Astra the Lonely Airplane

Astra is a sleek, shiny airplane who loves to go flying with her best friend, Captain Dan. But when Astra and Dan suddenly find themselves out of a job, Astra must wait in her lonely hangar for a new owner to come along and give them somewhere to go! As the weeks turn into months and the right buyer still doesn't appear, Astra begins to wonder: Will she ever get to fly again?

Author Julie Whitney wrote Astra the Lonely Airplane, after after her husband's job as Chief Pilot of a corporate jet came to a grinding halt during the COVID-19 pandemic. She sat her beautiful interior one last time and openly wept, feeling sick to her stomach wondering what would become of her, and how long she would in the hangar before being flown again.

Astra the Lonely Airplane, the first rhyming picture book in the Astra series, is appropriate for young K-5 readers and also for preschoolers, who will enjoy memorizing the rhyming verse. The book includes an educational glossary of plane terminologies and interesting facts, as well as a three-minute video via a QR Code in the book that children can scan to see a tour of the real Astra given by the real Captain Dan. This book teaches children about planes, math and geography, and about overcoming adversity in challenging times and embracing new circumstances that may occur in their lives, such as a move to a new city. Astra the Lonely Airplane will leave readers wondering what will happen to Astra after she lands in her new home. Stay tuned for the second installment in the Astra series! 

Author: Julie Whitney
Publisher: Belle Isle Books
Published: 03/02/2022
Pages: 44
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.74lbs
Size: 8.50h x 8.50w x 0.25d
ISBN: 9781953021410
Audience: Ages 4-8

About the Author
Simpson, Michelle: - Michelle Simpson is a full-time illustrator based out of the Niagara Region of Canada. She graduated with a BAA in illustration from Sheridan College. Michelle's main focus is on children's book illustrations and educational material for kids. She has worked with many large publishing houses and has also created concept artwork and final backgrounds for season two of the children's TV show "Ollie: The Boy Who Became What He Ate" and season one of "Tee and Mo."Whitney, Julie: - Julie Whitney is a public relations professional with forty years of experience in public relations and marketing, having worked on both the agency and client side as well as in the television industry. Her company, Phillippi-Whitney Communications, LLC, founded in 2000, represents both large and small clients in a wide variety of industries. She has promoted dozens of authors throughout her career, often supplementing the efforts of the internal PR teams of their publishers. She also works as on-camera talent, appearing in both television commercials and video podcasts. She even appeared as an extra in the movie "Grease," which was shot on location in the summer of 1977 in Los Angeles.Julie lives in Cincinnati with her husband Dan, a corporate pilot upon whom the character of Captain Dan is based. A naval aviator and USNA grad, he flew the P-3 Orion on active duty, and has flown a Gulf-stream G100 (Astra) for the past thirteen years. With four grown children, they are now empty nesters and love spending time with their black Lab, Brody. They also enjoy traveling, boating, golfing, and all types of physical fitness.