May the 4th be with you: space books accessible for blind children - News - Living Paintings

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May the 4th be with you: space books accessible for blind children

4th May 2026

On the left, a tactile image of three astronauts in space, with the moon on the left and a satellite on the right. The astronaut in the centre is an adult, whilst the two by his side little boys! On the right, a baby boy feels a tactile image from Goodnight Spaceman.

MAY THE 4TH BE WITH YOU! It’s Star Wars Day. A time to celebrate the fantastical worlds found in galaxies far, far away… and though we’re bound to earth, one thing is guaranteed to transport us to other worlds: reading.

Why is it important to read?

A young girls wearing glasses sits on the floor with an open book reading braille.

Engaging with picture books from a young age is key to improving literacy skills, social skills and strong mental health.

For blind and visually impaired children, however, the visual element of stories is missing, or hard to access. With our audio tactile books, however, blind and visually impaired children can more clearly understand the images through the power of touch and sound.

Our free postal library contains over 300+ titles amongst which are many space-themed titles that are perfect for the budding cosmonaut.

A tactile image of a spaceman, floating about in his spacesuit, with the moon and a satellite above him. Two boys in smaller spacesuits float about, one on either side of him.

Goodnight Spaceman

Inspired by ESA astronaut Tim Peake, Goodnight Spaceman delves into the imagination of two young boys who are fascinated about space. One evening, they say goodnight to their space toys and journey into outer space where they meet their astronaut dad and explore the International Space Station.

Introduced by Tim Peake, our audio tactile version of this picture book features three hand-painted tactile pages, braille inserts in grades one and two, and an exclusive descriptive audio guide to the images voiced by actor Rob Brydon.

The tactile image shows Rocket, a young dark-skinned girl with a telescope; a disinterested young boy stands beside her, looking at his phone.

Look Up!

Look Up! is a joyous, life-affirming picture book introduces the lovable Rocket, a space-obsessed girl who wants to be the greatest astronaut, star-catcher, space-traveller that has ever lived! But first… she needs to convince her big brother Jamal to stop looking down at his phone and start LOOKING UP at the stars!

With vibrant tactile images and an audio guide read by the brilliant Naomi Ackie, this picture book will reignite your desire to turn off those screens and switch on to the outside world.

A tactile image of a rabbit in a spacesuit, looking happy as it stares at a flag and the tiny earth in the distance.

Roaring Rockets

Zoom to the moon with a trio of animal astronauts in Roaring Rockets, a lively picture book!

Readers are invited along on a lunar expedition and will learn about space exploration from blast off to splash down through zippy rhyming text and bright, bold artwork.

Which book will transport you to another world today?

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