Synopsis
Enchanting verses and beautiful watercolor paintings transport young readers to a magical world of moonbeams and starshine, in a bedtime book of poetry.
Reviews
PreSchool-Grade 3-In this collection of original poems (only two have appeared previously in children's magazines), Yolen celebrates the brightest object in the night sky. Written in a variety of poetic styles, including haiku, the selections evoke moods that range from fanciful, to humorous, to serious. Fantasies and realities of nighttime are perfectly captured in the rich, double-page illustrations. Many of the bright watercolor scenes are set against deep blue and purple backgrounds. They are highlighted with touches of starlight, moonbeams, and shadows, painted in varying shades of white. The moon is often given human facial features. These beautifully rendered illustrations enhance the enjoyable, readable selections. Older, more sophisticated readers should try Ted Hughes's Moon-Whales and Other Moon Poems (Viking, 1976; o.p.).
April L. Judge, formerly at Jefferson Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
As with Owl Moon , Yolen will dazzle readers with these 19 poems about the moon. Councell, ( Handel and the Famous Sword Swallower of Halle ), meanwhile, contributing a palette of muted blues, purples, and grays, proves an effective counterpart. Both author and artist move easily from a spoof of British Mother Goose to a poignant poem about the "Old Woman Who Never Dies," the Sioux name for the moon. Easily accessible to children, Yolen's images startle and tease. The moon is "a sickle for pruning the stars," a "coin hung in the sky" or a place to house "everything that got broke on earth." By turns wise, clever, entertaining, and thoughtful, these well-crafted poems are powered by their concentrated simplicity, and, like the moon itself, hint of revelation in ordinary things. Ages 3-up.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
The ever fluent (and prolific) Yolen offers 19 poems, written over ten years, on a single, well-worn topic--proving that there's always more to say about this near neighbor, potent image, and spur to the imagination. For would-be poets, the variety here is instructive: rueful humor (the moon as a source of ``unwanted stuff,'' including ``Mrs. Ashkenazi/who taught me second grade,/and any book to be found/in the dentist's waiting room''); references to various cultures (a ``Brazilian Moon Tale'' describes the animals nibbling the moon, night by night); lyrical descriptions; intriguing images (``The moon is a sickle/For pruning the stars,/For thinning out Venus/And weeding out Mars...''). Councell's illustrations feature softly rounded figures against dreamy landscapes or a starry sky, rendered in a gentle, grayed palette that centers on violet as it ranges from green to rose. An appealingly cozy offering, just right for bedtime sharing. (Poetry/Picture book. 4-9) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Ages 4-8. The moon in the night sky has provided endless contemplation for youngsters. Yolen explains that as an urban child, she could never see the moon, and nighttime was fearsome; then she moved to the country, saw the moon, and stopped being afraid of the night. These 19 poems--written in haiku and rhymed and unrhymed verse--reflect varied and positive aspects of the moon. The moon becomes a receptacle for broken things, the Old Woman Who Never Dies (Sioux), a sickle, a grandmother, a coin to pay the Dream Maker, and green cheese. The range of ideas, from humorous to pensive, flows through the well-chosen words, although some verses speak more effectively than others. Watercolor paintings, touched with opaque white and showing rounded figures and distinctive backgrounds, possess an eternal quality like that of the moon itself. Deborah Abbott
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