Review: Happy Moon Day!

It is the 50thanniversary of the moon landing, so I’m noticing a lot of moon picture books on the shelves. There are so many great ones! I urge you to read as many as you can. But today I’m posting a review of a story I had the pleasure of hearing last fall before it was even published. Last September I attended a children’s writing course offered at the Highlights Foundation (another thing I highly recommed!), and Heidi Stemple was one of the faculty (who graciously shared her words of wisdom on one of my WIPs). While there she read the text for this amazing story! I knew I had to own a copy of this book, so as soon as it came out, I bought myself a copy and had Heidi and her co-author mom (you might have heard of her? Jane Yolen has written a few books in her time) sign my copy. Now all I need is for the illustrator to sign it. Matt Phelan is local to me, and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him before, so that may be possible! Anyway, I digress. Without further ado, I present to you my review of: 

​TITLE: A KITE FOR MOON

AUTHORS: Jane Yolen & Heidi Stemple 

ILLUSTRATOR: Matt Phelan

PUBLISHER: Zonderkidz/2019

OPENING LINES: 

It was morning and Moon sat alone in the sky.
The stars were all abed.
No one below was singing to her.
No one was sending up rockets
or writing poems about her.
No one was taking her photograph
or painting her picture.
Moon began to feel terribly sorry for herself.

​Poor Moon! She’s sad. But, dear reader, don’t worry! A boy, flying a kite on the beach, is watching. He has a plan. He realizes the moon is too far away to hug, so he writes a note on his kite and sends his promise up, up, up. This story follows the boy and Moon through days and months and years. All the while the boy remembers his promise to visit Moon someday. He sends more kites. He watches as the moon waxes and wanes and eclipses. But, dear reader, don’t worry! I promise the book delivers a satisfying ending. 
 
Heidi Stemple and Jane Yolen’s lyrical text flows beautifully. And Matt Phelan’s illustrations flow beautifully along with it. From the cover to the dedication (“For Neil Armstrong, who showed us the way.”) to the title page to the final spread, this book will not disappoint. The moon landing was a feat made possible by all the individuals who once had dreams and made promises. I think A KITE FOR MOON perfectly captures the message that making dreams come true is possible. A must read!

Read this review on Goodreads or Amazon.