Kite for Moon

Jane has been called the Hans Christian Andersen of America and the Aesop of the twentieth century. She sets the highest standard for the industry, not only in the meaningful body of work she has created, but also in her support of fellow authors and artists. Her books range from the bestselling How Do Dinosaurs series to the Caldecott winning Owl Moon to popular novels such as The Devil’s Arithmetic, Snow in Summer, and The Young Merlin Trilogy, to award-winning books of poetry such as Grumbles from the Forest, and A Mirror to Nature. In all, she has written over 335 books (she’s lost count), won numerous awards (one even set her good coat on fire), and has been given six honorary doctorates in literature. For more information, please visit www.janeyolen.com. Heidi E.Y. Stemple didn’t want to be a writer when she grew up. It wasn’t until she was 28 years old that she gave in and joined the family business, publishing her first short story in a book called Famous Writers and Their Kids Write Spooky Stories. The famous writer was her mom, author Jane Yolen. Since then, she has published twenty books and numerous short stories and poems, mostly for children.Matt Phelan is the illustrator of many books for young readers, including Flora’s Very Windy Day by Jeanne Birdsall, Xander’s Panda Party by Linda Sue Park, and The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, winner of the 2007 Newbery Medal. He is the author/illustrator of the picture books Druthers and Pignic, as well as the graphic novels The Storm in the Barn (winner of the Scott O’Dell Award), Around the World, Bluffton, and Snow White. Matt lives in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.

PreS-Gr 1--The allure of the moon has been a favorite theme for picture book authors from Margaret Wise Brown and Eric Carle to Frank Asch and Mordicai Gerstein. Yolen has explored it previously in Owl Moon. Here, writing with her daughter, she imagines the trajectory of astronaut Neil Armstrong's lifelong interest. Flying a kite at the beach in the early morning light, a tousle-haired boy becomes aware of the moon's loneliness: 'The stars were all abed./No one below was singing to her./No one was sending up rockets/or writing poems about her.' He knows how good a hug feels, but the moon is too far, so he sends a note via kite--the first of many. Readers watch the boy grow, gazing through telescopes and learning to drive, to fly, and, finally, to undertake a rocket voyage. At his lunar destination, an outstretched hand signals the fulfillment of his early wish. The text is spare but full of warmth and lyricism. Phelan's lively, flowing inked outlines convey both the steadfast connection between boy and orb and the movement born of passion. The paintings contain subtle and pleasing parallels, e.g., the rocket's orange and yellow exhaust mimics the flame-colored tail of Armstrong's childhood kite; the conclusion echoes the opening while extending the message. Panels effectively collapse time at key moments. VERDICT Smooth pacing and narrative clarity combine with an evocative presentation to make this a first choice to celebrate the 50th anniversary of America's moon landing. --Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library