Music and story combine in this gorgeous book, The Planets. Push the button on each of the 10 double pages to hear an orchestra playing excerpts of Holst's famous suite. 

This tale is about a brother and sister who adventure deep into our solar system. Helen and Tim get ready for bed in their new space rocket bunk beds... but sleep will have to wait as they magically blast up, up, up into the glittering night sky, leaving planet Earth far below them.

Helen and Tim journey here, there and everywhere through our majestic solar system. They soar past the cold rocky surface of Mars as it rises into towering peaks and plunges into deep canyons and glide through a bumpy asteroid belt made of icy rocks. They blast deeper into our solar system, exploring the dazzling stars and astounding planets along the way. But now it's time to head home! As the rocket speeds towards Earth, Tim and Helen watch the sun rise over their planet. 

At the back of the book, find a short biography of the composer, Gustav Holst, with details about his composition of The Planets. Next to this, you can replay the musical excerpts and, for each of them, read a discussion of the instruments, rhythms and musical techniques that make them so powerful. A glossary defines musical terms.

The Story Orchestra series brings classical music to life for children through gorgeously illustrated retellings of classic ballet and music stories paired with 10-second sound clips of orchestras playing from their musical scores. Check out the other books: Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake and The Nutcracker